In this period, when people feel happy and healthy as they spend time in nature, and the longing to return to nature increases, natural stone continues to exist in the most powerful way in contemporary examples of housing typology, thanks to its nature-integrated structure and all the physical and aesthetic advantages it offers. This is exactly why we have dedicated our Showcase pages in this issue to modern housing designs in Spain, Mexico, Greece, Paraguay, India, Brazil and Indonesia, nestled with nature and shaped by natural stone.
Alpha House
Architectural
Design: Alexis Dornier
Completion Date: 2020
Area: 280 m²
Location: Ubud, Indonesia
Photography: KIE
Natural Stone: Sandstone
Location: Wall and roof coverings
This two-story building aims expressions of two distinctive architectural ideas. The ground floor is articulated as a simple box volume that holds the living room, kitchen, foyer and garage ans acts as the pedestal for the above. In the top floor a series of twisted surfaces express themselves as walls and ceilings, repeat and create a rhythmic sequence. Grid shells suggest interesting and new ways to define roofs. In the Alpha House, walls become the roofs and create a silhouette, consisting of an iconic and rhythmic pattern that sticks – completing the picture of a sculptural object blending into its environment- with the mountain scape of Bali’s background.
A pool reflects building’s wavy character in the water plane. The layout is simple, practical, and repetitive. The building’s east-west orientation provides self-shading. Walls made with ‘kerobokan stone, a local hard sandstone found in the vicinity of the site, and represents a traditional material that people use for constructions in Bali.
The House on the Olive Trees
Architectural Design: Gallardo Llopis Arquitectos
Completion Date: 2016
Area: 233 m²
Location: Valencia, Spain
Photography: German Cabo
Natural Stone: Local natural stone
Location: Facade
House on the Olive Trees by Gallardo Llopis Arquitectos is located on a large, steeply sloping plot of olive trees with irregular edges. The building, which has a unique view of the valley, offers its users a unique space to rest, relax and even to isolate from the world.
The structure functions as an observation area positioned at the top of the land, respecting the modulation of the existing terraces and olive trees in the land. The design took advantage of the natural slope of the land to provide an ideal vantage point to admire views of the wide valley and distant mountains. The two-storey residence, which adds character to the landscape while integrating the living spaces, provides good lighting throughout the day with its location on the land. The south-facing roof protects from the intense summer sun and allows the winter sun to be taken in. The swimming pool, which offers vivid reflections that strengthen the view of the environment, is positioned at an ideal spot to watch the sunset view. The entrance to the house from the northeast road is emphasized with a natural stone wall, while privacy is provided along the way to the interior. In the interior, the living area, dining room and kitchen, which are connected to the corridor, serve as a transparent center, while the bedroom is oriented to the southwest for privacy.
In the project, it was aimed to convey emotions to users not only with form or volume, but also with the use of materials. Each of the natural stone, wood, and glass materials used as the basic elements created a unique texture and atmosphere in the building. Natural stone, embodying the walls extending beyond the house, increases the feeling of solidity, while wood provides a feeling of warmth, and glass provides light and view of the landscape. The design emphasizes the concept of a retreat within the existing olive trees, together with the interior and exterior continuity of the spaces and the emotions evoked by the selected materials.
IP 01 House
Architectural Design: Studio Gabriel Garbin Arquitetura
Completion Date: 2019
Area: 635 m²
Location: Guaruja, Brazil
Photography: Fran Parente
Natural Stone: Local natural stone
Location: Facade
The building, designed by Studio Gabriel Garbin Arquitetura, is located on a plot of land close to the beach, on the south coast of the State of São Paulo. The building is placed in the Atlantic Forest in order to experience the pleasure of the ocean and natural vegetation at the same time. The main volume is formed by the combination of two masses of local natural stone and concrete with different functions. In the project, privacy was prioritized in order to integrate social areas and create an intimate retreat. The first volume, positioned as a perpendicular addition to the main street, contains the garage, sink and entrance section, while the second volume contains the service area, lounge, pool and social areas directly connected to the kitchen. The second volume, which plays a fundamental role in the daily routine, has become a very natural way of bringing users together for meals. It was also aimed to make the beach atmosphere feel in the most intimate way by establishing an indoor and outdoor relationship for the bedrooms.
Jetvan House
Architectural Design: Design Work Group
Completion Date: 2018
Area: 560 m²
Location: Surat, India
Photography: Sebastian Zachariah, Ira Gosalia
Natural Stone: Local natural stone
Location: Facade
Located in the agricultural fields on the outskirts of Surat region of India, Jetvan House takes its name from a Hindi word meaning calm place. A building where privacy is at the forefront has been designed for homeowners who want to escape from city life and use this place as a retreat. Spread over an area of 10,000 m², the land is divided into different zones as residential areas, agricultural lands and semi-open spaces. The entrance of the house is accentuated by a natural stone wall and landscape area that defines the character of the place.
The layout of the plan consists of special volumes built on both sides in accordance with the search for privacy in the home, and common areas that combine these spaces and provide the opportunity for users to come together. The bedrooms and living units, located in the north-south direction, face east to the rather large garden that visually feeds them. While the natural stone walls surrounding the service units surround the outdoor swimming pool, creating a textural background; The gap between the blocks and the height difference between the north-south blocks provides wind circulation between these directions. The open staircase in the middle of the blocks creates a sculptural appearance, while at the same time creating a threshold space between them. With the height differences, space and pockets created in the building, the mass and the mobility are provided on the façade. In Jetvan House, which respects its land, the material palette favors simple and impressive choices. Local natural stone in dark gray tones and brown brick are used together on the façade, emphasizing the very green terrain in which the building is located as the most important design element.
La Vida House
Architectural Design: Zozaya Arquitectos
Completion Date: 2013
Area: 650 m²
Location: Troncones, Mexico
Photography: Cesar Belio, Michael Calderwood
Natural Stone: Limestone and local natural stone
Location: Facade, landscape and pool coatings
Casa La Vida, designed by Zozaya Arquitectos, is located in the Troncones that is famous with ist calm and stunning environment. It has a rectangular land with an area of 2000 sqm. The surface of the land is flat, having access through the main street. The central concept of the project was to create a contemporary house, with large spaces but preserving the already traditional style in the area, taking advantage of local materials and the excellent workmanship of local masters. The central volume of the house consists of two volumes that frame a palapa in the center where the living and dining area are located. The palapa, having a very high roof and using materials such as dry palm, allows us to create a very spacious and fresh space for most of the year, and also takes advantage of the breeze that crosses the space causing a decrease in temperature in a natural way.
In the other volumes there is the family hall and the kitchen in closed spaces, and on the upper floor two large suites located. The exterior of the house, access, gardens, terrace and pool are the elements that really make the house a unique and highly comfortable space to enjoy the house. Local materials from the area are used such as the pool covered with stones rescued from the local rivers, placed with great skill and patience by our artisan builders, limestone, palm wood and parota.
Stone House in Menorca
Architectural Design: Nomo Studio
Completion Date: 2019
Area: 450 m²
Location: Menorca, Spain
Photography: Joan Guillamat
Natural Stone: Limestone and local natural stone
Location: Facade and garden walls
Located on a hill on the Spanish island of Menorca, the stone house was built using the same techniques and materials as the old limestone walls that surround farmland on the island. The stone layers created by adding one on top of the other on the façade and the garden walls ensure the harmony of the architecture and the landscape. The fact that all of the natural stones used on the façade are stones removed from the soil during the construction of the villa also strengthens this harmony. The program consists of six bedrooms, living room, dining room, kitchen, garage and auxiliary units; It is arranged around a magnificent two-storey high space that physically and visually connects the lower and upper floors.
It is a semi-open space that is an extension of the covered patio, kitchen, dining room and living room, providing flexible spaces for daytime activities. The openable double-glazed façade of this volume, which creates a threshold between the house and nature; In the temperate season, the winter garden functions as a shaded porch in the summer, and as a thermal buffer in the winter, by providing insulation. In the garden, wild olive trees and native vegetation surround the gray stone-clad swimming pool with limestone ramps. The façade composition provides a reinterpretation of Minorca’s traditional joinery and white plaster jambs, with white plaster and light-coloured stone forming a geometric patch.
Peak House
Architectural Design: OMCM Arquitectos
Completion Date: 2019
Area: 200 m²
Location: San Bernardino, Paraguay
Photography: Leonardo Mendez
Natural Stone: Sandstone
Location: Facade, landscape and garden walls
Peak House by OMCM Arquitectos is positioned against the romantic sunset view of Lake Ypacaraí, one of the famous holiday resorts, in San Bernardino, Paraguay. The residence, which was designed as a weekend house to spend pleasant time with family and friends at the request of the users, is placed on stepped terraces due to the steep location of the rocky land. The planning of the house has been made in such a way that it is possible to watch the landscape from different perspectives at different times of the day. With this in mind, the project team organized the spaces of the house as units placed on top of each other in a hierarchical order. The garage and service areas are located at the lowest level of the building as part of the social areas. The dining room and kitchen are placed in a flexible space on the third floor, while the bedrooms are positioned to open to a balcony that breaks the effect of the afternoon sun on the rooms. The top floor is designed as a panoramic terrace to enjoy the enthusiasm of the green and the lake view at sunset.
Local materials played a key role in the construction of the house. The idea of using natural stone materials, which emerged during the excavation process, in the construction of the building, which was originally thought to be built as reinforced concrete, gave the design a different direction. Thus, energy and cost expenses are also reduced by the use of local stones. Thus, a weekend residence that functionally meets the needs of its users and is in harmony with the landscape has emerged.
River House
Architectural Design: Luciano Gerbilsky Arquitectos
Completion Date: 2018
Area: 1.200 m²
Location: Valle de Bravo, Mexico
Photography: Héctor Velazco Facio/José Margaleff
Natural Stone: Local natural stone
Location: Facade
The River House, designed by Luciano Gerbilsky Arquitectos, is located in a forest area in Valle de Bravo. The building consists of two volumes, one private and one common, starting from the main entrance and separated by the river surrounding the entire house. The basement of the building, which houses a wine cellar with ideal temperature and lighting and a multimedia room, has a kitchen, pool, dining and living areas on the terrace. The private space consists of 5 bedrooms, each with its own bathroom and balcony overlooking the river. While there is a spa with sauna, Turkish bath and massage area on the lower floor of the building, there are inner gardens combining indoor and outdoor spaces at every corner. The structure was built with a steel frame system that allows for large spaces with large windows and high ceilings. Glass, wood and aluminum materials are used on the ceiling of the building, whose facade is covered with earth-colored natural stone. The bridge, which connects the two main masses and consists of glass and steel materials, aims to offer a view of the architecture of the house and the natural environment. It is aimed to enjoy the sound of water and the view from each balcony by gradually reducing the height of the structure, which consists of volumes with sloping roofs meeting at a central point. River House offers an experience that integrates with nature with its surrounding natural elements such as dark gray stones, topography, vegetation and river.
Villa Mandra
Architectural Design: K-Studio
Completion Date: 2020
Area: 600 m²
Location: Mykonos, Greece
Photography: Claus Brechenmacher and Reiner Baumann
Natural Stone: Local natural stone
Location: Facade
The 6-bedroom holiday home, designed by K-Studio and located in Mykonos, embraces the magnificent view with a view that is integrated with the garden with its stone walls that are precisely arranged. The building was built with the idea of a slow and comfortable summer experience, aiming to establish a peaceful and free connection with nature. Form follows emotion rather than function, while every space in the house opens up a new opportunity for rest, reflection and exploration. Although the house is expected to serve a large number of guests, it has been avoided to dominate the landscape with large volumes. Inspired by the modest complexity of the traditional island, the architecture is shaped around the “courtyard”, which offers a large living space covered with a large but light pergola. This courtyard has been turned into a focal point that connects seamlessly to the living room and kitchen volumes and overlooks the pool and garden beyond. Under the garden that includes the pool, there are bedrooms reserved for privacy and offering uninterrupted views towards the sea. The separation of the bedrooms from the general volumes in this way clearly divides the social and private space.
The main idea that characterizes the house is contemporary techniques applied to traditional materials such as limewash, natural stone and wood to create nostalgic architecture that bridges local heritage and contemporary life. Natural stone walls, traditionally handcrafted, display a smooth and confident stance with their chamfered corners. Villa Mandra is inspired by the Cycladic tradition, a humble Greek culture enriched with natural materials and inspired by contemporary age life.
