Casa Hostel

Refurbishment of single-family dwelling

Costa d´en Blanes, Calviá.
April 2008

Under the indispensable condition of maintaining the volumetry as it was, we chose to completely empty the interior spaces, leaving only the floor slabs.

Once the spaces had been cleared, the project consisted in filling them with light, enhancing the view of the Bay of Palma as much as possible.

One of the most intense surprises found while visiting this house was the discovery – going straight from the street to the upper storey – of the hugeness of its true dimensions, which were unimaginable from the outside. The change is amazing, and it is pleasing to the eye to find these wide, illuminated and transparent areas. From the foyer and through a transparent glass panel, one can enjoy some superb views of the bay.

Ultimately, or primarily, this architectural project provides a certain mode of habitation. The light, the dimensions, the transparencies, the contrasts between the wide white areas and the contoured black patches result in a dwelling that is committed to the beauty of the place, albeit by means of its own finished form.