yinjispace

ARCHITECTURE
Tsou Arquitectos
PHOTOGRAPHY
Ivo Tavares Studio
EDITOR
Gina
Collection

Casa da Levada is located in the village of Paredes in northern Portugal, backed by the Tamega River. The building seems to have quietly grown out of the earth. The residence was designed by Tsou Arquitectos, with the theme of "Constructed Nature". Through responses to materials, terrain and light, it achieves a deep integration of architecture and the environment, redefining natural dwelling.

To respect the original undulation and fluidity of the site, the building volume was designed to stretch and extend along with the terrain, blurring the boundary between the artificial and the natural. The building seems like a fold in the texture of the terrain, responding to the internal order of the place with visual and physical continuity, forming a seemingly natural fit.

The path home is meticulously depicted as a stone trench cutting through the green space, like a clue, guiding people through nature and into a narrative where space and emotions, nature and architecture interweave. The path carries not only a specific route but also a sense of ritual - a spiritual transition from the countryside back to the shelter.

The residence is divided by a gap that seems like a "geological fault", forming two parts: the social area and the private area. The overall spatial layout thus unfolds, and eventually they all converge at the central courtyard, forming an energy center. On one side of the interior is an open social space, and on the other side is a quiet private residence. Together, they encircle inward to form a central courtyard, resembling an embracing posture or a converging state, thus creating a quiet and open shared space for daily living.

The horizontal eaves spread out as lightly as wings, forming a subtle light and shadow translation device, providing shelter for the courtyard while also bringing a sense of scale relaxation. The boundaries of the building thus become soft, creating a grey space between the interior and exterior in the alternation of light and shadow. To create a comfortable and pleasant living space, a ground water circulation and radiation system is adopted inside, which is driven by a heat pump for cooling and heating regulation. The reserved ceramic floor tiles effectively enhance the heat transfer efficiency, achieve uniform temperature release, and form an efficient thermal environment system.

Meanwhile, the building is also equipped with a ventilation system (CMV) and heat exchangers to facilitate air renewal and reduce energy consumption. The precisely arranged window opening strategy works in coordination with the external shading device to ingeniously adapt to the changes of the four seasons: sunlight is introduced in winter and heat is kept out in summer, creating a comfortable and energy-efficient microclimate of light and heat.

The glass used in the residence has all been precisely calculated. It not only takes into account the line of sight and lighting, but also combines mechanical shading systems with external louvers to ingeniously adapt to the local climate and create an energy-saving and pleasant lighting system.

The facade of Casa da Levada uses local natural cork boards as the main skin material, which not only responds to the local construction tradition but also enhances the thermal performance and environmental adaptability of the building. The natural texture of the material echoes the landform texture, forming a unified texture expression both inside and out. The roof of the building adopts the same natural covering form as the surrounding environment.

The vegetation roof not only visually concealments the volume of the building, but also enhances the insulation performance and mitigated the heat island effect. The building thus truly becomes a part of the site ecosystem rather than an intervener. The courtyard paving is made of granite stones recycled from the site ruins. After meticulous design and reassembly, they are given a brand-new life. This activation of "local memory" enables buildings not only to construct the future but also to carry the history of the land.

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