Casa Azul

This project involved renovating a traditional Algarve house and at the same time extending it to turn it into a contemporary family villa. But this was no ordinary renovation. The more than 5,230 square metres of land around the house are dotted with ancient olive, almond and orange trees, and keeping them was a must. So, the entire design began to gravitate around them, ensuring that none of them would need to be moved, or cut down, as they would make an important contribution to the house’s energy performance.
Then it was time to think about the form of the new building, which came about from bioclimatic and topographic surveys. The north façade was closed to prevent the entry of cold winds, and the whole house was opened up to the south, overlooking the sea and absorbing the sunlight.

The whole house has been opened up to the south, overlooking the sea and absorbing the sunlight

Respect for nature and concern for energy efficiency also underpinned the choice of materials. As such, the project by CORE-Architects studio used natural building elements, such as wood and a green roof, helping the building blend in with the environment and reducing the chemical impact and carbon footprint. The same ones from the original house (such as natural stone, wood, clay and red bricks) connected the two opposing architectural languages, that of a house blended with nature and the new one with a futuristic design. Interestingly enough they all end up functioning as a climate regulator.
Through these and many other aspects one can see that the "PASSIVHAUS” principles have been applied in this house, resulting in an ecological, comfortable and energy efficient house.