Spanish architecture practice lafincaroja reinvent a 1980s home on the outskirts of Valencia, Spain, catering to the Mediterranean sun and neighbouring pine forests.
Ana Martí is the architect behind bespoke architecture studio lafincaroja, specialising in honest and timeless interiors throughout Spain. Translating to ‘house in the hills’, their House in Colinas project is situated in the heart of Colinas de San Antonio, only a 20-minute drive from the city of Valencia. Surrounded by hotels, resorts, cafes and restaurants, homes in this neighbourhood are characterised by their smooth white rendered facade and traditional terracotta roof tiles.
Designed for a young family, lafincaroja have placed light and scale on a pedestal to make way for a contemporary abode filled with locally-sourced furniture.
Streamlined cabinetry and integrated appliances make for a functional kitchen, finished with contemporary black tapware.
Presented with a closed-off layout, lafincaroja needed to maximise the small and dark rooms within the home with almost no alteration to the home’s exterior. The brief centred around creating a living room that effectively opens up onto the garden, integrating the interior and exterior as one and allowing the client to enjoy the east-facing Valencian sun.
Materials throughout the home remain soft, refined and unpretentious. Light grey concrete floors unite the interior and exterior of the home, complemented by accents of rattan, jute and oak cabinetry. The kitchen, dining and living room are located in the centre of the home, with white walls and window frames enhanced by the natural light. A striking black kitchen bench interrupts the neutral palette and a narrow terracotta steel beam in the living room is a subtle nod to the home’s past life.
The Le Vita Pendant Lamp, designed by Barcelona design studio Nah Trang for Faro illuminates the dining table.
Tactile bedlinen adds an earthen sense of serenity to the bedrooms; maintaining the calm atmosphere felt throughout. A sliding door in the main bedroom offers an alternate entry to the backyard and douses the room in Mediterranean sun. In the bathroom, small-format ceramic white tiles and a floating timber vanity capture the essence of the simple and enduring home.
lafincaroja have effectively used light as a material in this Spanish home, reflecting the Valencian landscape through a consist palette of soft textures and clean finishes.
The living room effectively opens up onto the garden, integrating the interior and exterior as one.
The Academy Lamp designed by Nah Trang for Faro in the minimal bedroom.
