Madrid, like many other cities, has traditionally been built with a simple language of openings on stone, ceramic, or plastered surfaces that give it a specific character, generally linked to the construction of its jambs and superimposed elements like balconies, grilles, wooden shutters, or blinds. This creates a family of elements that endow the city with a rich and varied language from a limited number of simple components. The project proposes to reclaim these elements and their recognizable, friendly character, in contrast to the ubiquitous solution of white prefabricated bands and dark carpentry bands that homogenize neighborhoods and cities without considering their idiosyncrasies.
An Opening in Two Acts
Theenvelope is constructed through two typically Madrid-like actions. On one hand,the opening on a massive wall is reclaimed. On the other, an ironwork elementis superimposed on this opening, reinterpreting the grilles, balconies, andshutters of Tetuán, emphasizing their value as traditional passive climaticdevices. The result is a simple language, with a very limited number oflow-cost elements, but which provides a certain richness, improves the thermalperformance of the envelope, and links this contemporary architecture with theneighborhood's history.
An Environmental Machine
Thecomplex functions as an environmental machine in which natural ventilation,draining floors, sunlight, shading, and renewable energy generation devices -photovoltaics - allow for optimal climatic performance.
As a passive protection element, the opening reacts to differentorientations according to tradition, without losing sight of the fact that weare dealing with social housing, with repetition and tight costs: to the south,east, and west with thermal aluminum shutters, articulated, and fixed-angleprojectable. To the north, the same shutters in a simpler version.
On the floors closest to the street, at the neighborhood scale, therailing allows personalizing the opening with pots or planters without riskingdisturbances to the outside.
The Blocks
Theproject constructs three rectangular-shaped pieces with an 11-meter depth,avoiding contact between them, thus allowing a high level of repeatability inthe housing solutions. The north and south blocks feature through-apartmentswith these two orientations. The south-facing living rooms extend through thekitchen area towards the north. The proposed solution organizes 4 apartments ineach block, served by two simple and compact cores, with the stairs on thenorth side. In both blocks, the apartments have 1 bedroom. In the north block,the easternmost apartment extends and becomes a 3-bedroom apartment, which canbe converted into a 2-bedroom apartment for persons with reduced mobility whenrequired. The entrances are organized through porticoed spaces, one to thenorth connecting with the corresponding level of the new park, and another tothe south. In both cases, a single entrance serves two stair cores.
EMVS PASEO DE LADIRECCIÓN
Social Housing, MADRID-SP
2024
Client: EMVS
Surface: 11.600 m2
Location: Madrid, Spain
Competition
Project Team
FRPO + DL+A
Project leaders
Pablo Oriol, Fernando Rodríguez, José María de La Puerta, Paloma Campo Ruano
Collaborators
Juan Muñoz, Pablo G. Besada, Adrián Sánchez
Carlos Prisco Carrasco, Raquel Vozmediano, Jaime Cubero
Images
FRPO