Concrete Architecture

House Sevilla de la Nueva, Spain, 2000 Estudio Alberto Campo Baeza This house stands on rugged terrain with views north to the distant Sierra de Gredos mountains. It is a hostile environment, with little vegetation. Rather than try to tame the setting, Campo Baeza has produced an elemental solution emphasizing the barren beauty of the place and hinting at the innovation and excitement of a basic homestead, a pioneering venture in a newly found land. But this is no primitive shack. A platform makes the steep site traversable and provides a magnificent viewpoint, as well as somewhere to sit on or shelter under. A glazed structure on top gives protection from wind, and a carved-out space beneath serves as a refuge from winter cold and summer heat. 'I needed to express the stereotonic character of the basement piece,' explains Campo Baenza. 'The podium should declare its continuity with the earth, like a cave.' He decided that concrete was the best aesthetic solution, as well as being the cheapest and structurally the most straightforward. He likes concrete because 'it gives great unity. It is strong. It is silent.' He compares working with concrete to 'creating the earth'.Croft, Catherine is the author of 'Concrete Architecture', published 2004 under ISBN 9781586854607 and ISBN 1586854607.