Remote access: Office KGDVS escapes the city in search of solitude

Known for its idiosyncratic responses to space and material, Office Kersten Geers David Van Severen (KGDVS) is the latest architecture firm to complete a Solo House in Spain, as part of luxury developer Christian Bourdais’ vision for an architectural resort.
The circular house allows nature to dominate in the most elegant way – architects Kersten Geers and David Van Severen wanted the architecture to be invisible and let the surrounding 1000 hectares of natural beauty in the Matarraña region of Spain feel overwhelmingly present.
The design is reductive yet intuitive. A concrete plateau is raised just above the terracotta-coloured earth which forms the base of the house and a roof, mirroring the plateau beneath it, sits on four rows of eight steel columns to form a pavilion. Sliding facades made of extruded aluminium and polycarbonate panes can be moved around the three ‘indoor’ segments, exposing the interior to nature or sheltering it from the elements.
Inside, concrete floors are combined with polycarbomate panels, glass, polished stainless steel doors and dyed wood ceilings
The architecture lays out a new geometric understanding of the concept of ‘home’ and muddles the boundaries of indoor and out. Through the design, Office KGDVS looked to explore, question and provoke, the bonds that we have with nature.
Framed at the centre of the circular form, is a piece of untamed landscape with a pool scooped out at one side. It is from the middle that one can experience the orbiting shapes on the roof that hold water tanks and generators. Painted by artist Pieter Vermeersch, these functional necessities are translated into sculptural objects.
Appealing to a generation of nomadic and experiential consumers, Bourdais’ plan is to create a hotel on the same site for archi-tourists in search of self-imposed isolation and the freedom to taste the creative concepts of international architects.
Painter Pieter Vermeersch worked on these sculptural forms containing the facilities.
It is not often that an architect is given carte blanche and a piece of land to play with. Three years ago, Chilean duo Mayricio Pezo and Sofia Von Ellrichshausen completed another house just a five-minute walk away the Office KGDVS house.
Carefully positioned within the landscape, the two houses are invisible to each other and the size of the land offers Bourdais many possibilities for the future of this architectural paradise.
The house is located in the middle of 1000 hectares of wilderness in the north-east of the Els Ports National Park, just over an hours drive from Reus airport.
The architecture lays out a new geometric understanding of the concept of ‘home’ and muddles the boundaries of indoor and out.
The roof is a rail for the extruded aluminium and polycarbonate curtain which slides around the exterior, encasing the concrete platform within or exposing it to the elements
Olive groves, almond tree fields and black truffles grow on the site which is surrounded by 18 medieval villages.
Office KGDVS commissioned designers Muller Van Severen to create this wire chaise longue.
The house is a stage from which to experience a 360-degree panorama of uninterrupted wilderness.
Office KGDVS are known for its theoretical approach to architecture.
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Solo House website and the Office KGDVS website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.
-
2023 Doolan Best Building award goes to Cuddymoss by Ann Nisbet Studio
The 2023 Doolan Best Building award is given to Cuddymoss, a ruin in north Ayrshire transformed into Scotland's finest building of the year
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Yonder Escalante reinvents glamping in the Utah Desert
Yonder Escalante is the ultimate eight-hectare hospitality experience, leaving no stone (or cactus) unturned
By Adrian Madlener Published
-
Extreme Cashmere’s Los Angeles takeover is a lesson in how to host in style
Amsterdam-based label Extreme Cashmere invites Wallpaper* behind the scenes of its Los Angeles pop-up, featuring an ephemeral restaurant inspired by the team’s beloved dinner parties
By Jack Moss Published
-
Hortensia Herrero Art Centre puts Valencia on the contemporary art map
Hortensia Herrero Art Centre launches in Valencia, offering a home for contemporary art to sit side by side with archaeological treasures
By Blaire Dessent Published
-
Collective, Hong Kong and Spain: Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2023
With bases in Hong Kong and Spain, Collective joins the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023, our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Nicolás y Nicolás, Spain and Ecuador: Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023
With offices in Spain and Ecuador, Nicolás y Nicolás is part of the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023, our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This light-filled Spanish house is defined by openness and geometry
A Spanish house by Arquitecturia Camps Felip is designed around its courtyards and its six volumes’ bold geometry
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Spain’s Casa Primitiva is ruled by simplicity
The pared-back Casa Primitiva by Hanghar fits in perfectly in its semi-rural Spanish context
By TF Chan Published
-
Architecture for animals leads the way at this school for dogs
Details are designed with dogs in mind at Spain’s Educan School for Dogs, Humans and Other Species
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Bold graphics and clever interventions define this Barcelona house redesign
Nestled amongst the Roman archaeological remains and buzzing eateries of the Borne district of Barcelona, BSP 20 is Raul Sanchez Architects' latest residential project
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
Girona house’s minimalist drama unfolds behind traditional façade
Casa Pujada del Rey Martí is a new Girona house by Fuses-Viader Architects and Montserrat Nogués Architect in Spain
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated