Inside a Mallorcan home redefining modern Mediterranean residing

‘Casa Óculo was impressed by a mix of Mediterranean vernacular structure, a powerful curiosity in sensory expertise, and a fascination with the passage of time,’ say the architects and co-founders of OHLAB, Paloma Hernaiz and Jaime Oliver. The Spanish studio is reflecting on its current venture, a single-family Mallorcan home positioned in a residential neighbourhood on the outskirts of Palma – the place the apply can also be based mostly.

Inside Casa Óculo, a Mallorcan home redefining island residing

The venture is outlined by its giant flat roof, which stretches east to west and seamlessly blends into the horizon. It’s a easy, but daring architectural gesture, below which areas are rhythmically delineated by thick, lime-rendered partitions.

‘Time performs a key position in the home – not solely within the each day motion of daylight by means of the oculus, which marks the hours like a home sundial, but in addition in a slower, subtler means: by means of the supplies themselves,’ say Hernaiz and Oliver.

‘The lime mortar partitions are alive – they age, breathe, and slowly develop a patina that provides depth and texture over time. This concept of structure that improves with age and connects to pure rhythms was central to our idea.’

Paradoxically, the simplicity of the geometry proved to be one of many architects’ biggest challenges throughout the venture. They clarify: ‘Reaching that readability required excessive precision – from slicing the oculus into the roof to aligning and proportioning the load-bearing partitions, and integrating pure supplies like stone, wooden, and brass in a means that felt easy.’

The staff chosen supplies that may climate fantastically over time. Their purpose was to in the end develop the appropriate texture and tone for his or her lime mortars. The fabric palette additionally consists of stone flooring, wood carpentry and pure brass particulars.

A vibrant Mediterranean backyard enhances the structure and was seen as a further materials within the venture. This outside house merges effortlessly with the encircling context and extends the character of the close by mountains into the residing areas.

‘We hope [residents] really feel a way of calm, safety, and softness,’ Hernaiz and Oliver inform Wallpaper*. ‘The home is supposed to be each introspective and open – it presents privateness and enclosure, however all the time stays related to the sky and the panorama.

‘The daylight getting into by means of the oculus brings a quiet rhythm to the areas, marking the day in a delicate and ever-changing means. The oculus creates an emotional and poetic connection to time. It’s a reminder of nature’s cycles and the way structure can quietly body and rejoice them.’