House for a Polo Lover

Perspective.

Words from the Architect

Site: Private estate in the Lazio countryside, 20 miles south-east of Rome, owned by a mixed couple (an American man and an Italian woman).

Perspective.

Program: To design a country house.

Architecture: The living and sleeping quarters are separated by a floor of air, which becomes an intermediate entertainment space, a place from which to look out over the landscape as if watching a film or a tribune (the staircase) from which to watch the polo games on the field in front of the house. The living area is shielded from the sun by the suspended bow that floats in the air, meeting requirements for sustainability and eliminating the need for air conditioning. The two boxes shaping the house are heated independently according to the number of occupants at any given moment: a bonus for the environment and the owner's pocket! Energy-saving strategies are also employed in the building structure: the steel frame of the flying box can be factory assembled and mounted on two structural supports, which are painted orange to enhance their visibility in the landscape. The house is clad in one-meter-wide concrete panels attached to a ventilated structure.

Perspective.

Perspective.

Perspective.

Perspective.

Indoor.

Plan.

Elevation.

Elevation.

Elevation.

Elevation.

Credits

• Text and images courtesy of w office | west architecture workroom

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