Local design firm Architecture Office Claudia Raurell has created the Villain House, which is a concrete residence now standing in place of what was once a dilapidated townhouse. This is located in Barcelona and it integrates the original front facade, which is notably the only part of the home that was able to be salvaged. The new volume is defined by its block structure with a straw-tonal concrete finish to match the original building.
The founder of the studio, Claudia Raurell speaks to Dezeen, noting "Only the main wall to the street, which is totally opaque, [was retained]. The rest of the structure was in very bad condition, so we replicated the exact same existing volume, due to urban planning reasons and also because the project believed and worked with the image of permanence, so we didn't want to deform the actual morphology and scale of the preexistence."
Image Credit: Josh Hevia
What Makes This Trend Stand Out
- Concrete Replica Residences
- Reconstructing old architectures with modern concrete techniques opens avenues for durable residential designs.
- Facade Preservation
- Maintaining historical facades while reconstructing the interiors promotes heritage conservation in urban planning.
- Straw-tonal Concrete Finishes
- Utilizing straw-tonal concrete finishes enhances aesthetic continuity with traditional building styles.
Sectors Adopting This
- Architecture and Design
- Combining new architectural designs with old structures highlights innovation in heritage-preserving construction.
- Urban Development
- Urban development strategies continuously evolve by integrating modern structures while maintaining historical aesthetics.
- Sustainable Construction
- Sustainable construction practices gain prominence through reuse of materials and facade preservation.
