This striking Spanish house makes the most of a tricky plot in a good area

There are many ways to deal with a sloping site, including burying houses in the hillside or creating huge retaining walls. Here, at Spanish house Casa Magarola in Barcelona’s affluent Sant Cugat del Vallés, a team of architects led by Raúl Sánchez have gone for a more subtle approach.

Supported by a handful of structural, slender concrete ‘legs’ connected by exceptionally thin reinforced concrete slabs, the private residence barely touches the ground, leaving the terrain almost intact – only two out of the site’s existing 40 trees were removed during construction. This light touch extends to the interiors, designed as a seamless open space.

Step inside this colourful Spanish house

Yet a first look at the 175 sq m house from the street reveals nothing of its airy open-plan living and stunning views. A white metal fence protects a terracotta-hued block, ‘a regular and hermetic volume’. It is only when you follow the stairs down to a square entrance balcony, enveloped by a green canopy, that the scenery starts to slowly reveal itself.

There is no traditional front door, but a series of floor-to-ceiling windows that open onto a spacious kitchen-dining area with a concrete and Ceppo di gré stone island. A built-in bench runs along the entire glazed façade, leading to a cosy living room complete with a fireplace. Hidden away in a central block are a bathroom and pantry.

‘Once inside, the connection between indoors and outdoors is fluid and constant: the surrounding trees, with branches brushing against the façades, and the distant views of the valley and mountains, are revealed in every corner, creating a continuous dialogue between the house and its environment,’ explains the architects.

A coral spiral staircase links the living area to the upstairs bedroom and top-floor roof terrace. Its first step is an enormous piece of local rock that ‘pays tribute to Carlo Scarpa’s approach to staircases, always conceived as an invitation to ascend.’

This unique element encapsulates the project’s philosophy: to create a home that both respects and enhances the natural beauty of its surroundings. Despite having no usable garden due to the site’s steepness, the highly energy-efficient home (complete with solar panels and a rainwater collection system) feels thoroughly connected to the outside, thanks to its terraces but also its carefully positioned windows.

On the H-shaped upper floor, two hidden balconies flank a central hallway. As well as framing sideways views of the landscape, they allow natural light to flow into more private spaces, including a shower room. A series of lattice screens adds privacy to the street-facing façade.

Equally precise are the interiors, showcasing a series of vintage pieces from Fenix Originals. These range from 1960s Vico Magistretti chairs in the kitchen, to a Jasper Morrison cork stool, Nani Marquina rug and Joan Antoni Blanc floorlamp in the living room.

Sourced from Víctor Lope Arte Contemporáneo, artworks by Spanish artists including Manu Manu Muñoz, Francisco Suárez, Catalina Montaña and Iñigo Arregi are dotted throughout the house.

raulsanchezarchitects.com