House in the Alentejo Coast

An apparently infinite woodland on the Alentejo coast designed by Aires Mateus Architects.

Amongst pines trees, a stone plateau is designed to a scale that may no longer be interpreted as a courtyard. The house embraces a wide area of trees surrounded  by a recognizable solid border. The concept for this 180000 sqm property is based on the desire to simultaneously enjoy a perfect circle which seeks to embrace the surrounding scenery and fully open up to the Alentejo sky. The widest side of the house creates a water tank through the connection of geometries.

The interior of this compound is characterized by light. This extreme sophistication and connection between courtyard, walled garden and the confining white mass could hardly be achieved without the smooth operability and the uncompromising elegance of ah!38 birail and trirail solutions.

In this tense and continuous relationship, which is established between the exterior and interior of the house, light is the primary agent in the material definition of volumes, spaces and objects. Each area is united by a line of light, which harmonises the opposition between the solid limit and the idea of circular absence embracing the surroundings.