Dos Guardeñas

Just 50 min north of Madrid, the house is located in a privileged place, the southern slope of the Sierra de Somosierra, in the surroundings of the Lozoya and Jarama rivers.

The slope of the plot, together with its orientation, invites you to project yourself onto the hillside, showing its occupants the views towards the foothills of the Madrid mountains.

The two levels of the project look towards the valley in different ways. The top floor frames your views in three different directions across the landscape, while the bottom floor opens evenly towards the horizon

The two levels of the house look towards the valley in different ways. The top floor frames your views in three different directions across the landscape, while the bottom floor opens evenly towards the horizon.

The requirement of a large outdoor space and a preferably separate sports court converts Dos Guardeñas into a sequence of retaining walls and terraces to make horizontal platforms possible, between which there are two interior habitable levels. The upper one, more dedicated to the cold seasons, houses the fireplace and is more exposed to the sun, and the lower one, for the summer periods, is sheltered within the ground and opens up to the views and to the pool space protected in all its openings for the shadows cast by the upper floor.

Both levels open towards the valley, but while the upper floor delimits its framed perception towards three different landmarks of the landscape, the lower floor opens in continuity towards the entire horizon.

A third level is on the roof and exposed to the sky. It is occupied by a small soccer field that also allows other types of activities both day and night.