Marco de Canaveses, Portugal

Designed by Maria João Andrade and Ricardo Cordeiro of MJARC arquitectos lda, Douro Valley House is located on the stunning views over Douro valley.

Maria João Andrade was recently awarded a 2020 European 40 Under 40 Award from The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and The Chicago Athenaeum.

The project is constituted by two separate constructions, the first is an old construction that was rehabilitated to become the “living room” of the swimming pool area, then we have at a lower level the house itself searching for the view but camouflaged so that it cannot be perceived from the swimming pool area.

There are only a few instances in an architectural career where a client and an architect’s vision unify into an immaculate and complete expression of art and architecture. We were very fortunate to work with a couple who, devoted to the ideals of minimalism’s stark allure, asked us to design a house in the Douro, located on the stunning views over Douro Valley.

The desire to interfere as little as possible with the landscape’s visual topography prompted to attach the house to the ground and find façade and roof solutions with a direct relationship to the surroundings.

The idea of a “crouching building” guides the decisions concerning volume, position, occupation, exterior outfit, and facade claddings.

The property requires a holiday house program able to adjust to changes related to the number of users, the season, and so on.

This complex program (couple, family, friends; summer, winter; weekend, long terms) is solved by attending to values of low energy, spatial simplicity, and flexibility of use.

Project: Douro Valley House in Portugal
Architects: MJARC arquitectos lda
Design Team: Maria João Andrade and Ricardo Cordeiro
Client: CAS, Lda
Photographers: João Ferran