Designing Fonte das Perdizes house was quite a different challenge, as the program demanded a contemporary modern shaped house, fully integrated into Alentejo’s rough natural landscape.
© Geraldine Bruneel
- architects: gonçalobonniz arquitectos
- Location: 7570 Grândola, Portugal
- Project Year: 2021
- Photographs: Geraldine Bruneel
- Photographs: José Campos
- Area: 500.0 m2
House in Fonte Das Perdizes: An Ode to Quietness
How a Concrete House in Portugal Learned to Listen to the Landscape
In the Alentejo region of Portugal, where the cork oaks dot the sun-baked plains, the earth is in shades of yellow, and silence dominates, a new type of dwelling has begun to grow. The House in Fonte das Perdizes, finished in 2021 by gonçalobonniz arquitectos, is not a loud proclamation that shouts throughout the valley. On the contrary, it is an elegantly composed reaction—a modern, geometric figure that has acquired the ancient tongue of its rough surroundings.
The Architect’s Brief: A Dialogue, Not a Monologue
The challenge presented to leading architect Gonçalobo Bonniz was a fascinating paradox: a house with a very contemporary silhouette that the environment would totally accept was to be built in one of the most desolate and yet majestic places in Portugal. It was not to be a case of adaptation or longing for the past. No, building a monte alentejano was not the aim, but rather that of designing a 500-square-meter home of today that could initiate a respectful dialogue with the land. The project called for sensitivity in architecture, where form, material, and orientation would be determined by a dialogue with the site.
Materiality: Weaving the New into the Old
The house achieves this dialogue first and foremost through its material soul. It does not rely on imported, glossy finishes but on substances that tell a story of time and texture.
- Concrete as Earth: The primary structure, a poised geometric volume, uses concrete not as a cold, urban material but as a warm, tactile one. Its raw, board-marked texture echoes the mineral quality of the ground, its hue shifting with the sun from grey to a soft golden tone.
- Wood that Weathers: Accents of Kebony wood bring warmth to the composition. This engineered wood is chosen for its durability and beautiful silvering patina as it ages, ensuring the house will not stay pristine and new but will gracefully weather and blend further into the landscape.
- Local Craft: The integration of elements like ceramics from CR Cerâmicas roots the project in Portuguese craftsmanship, providing subtle nods to local tradition without ever veering into pastiche.
The Experience of Space: Framing the Panorama
Walking through the house, curated by the decorative touch of Flores Textile Studio, one experiences a masterclass in controlled views. The architecture acts as a carefully calibrated frame for the vast Alentejan panorama. Large glazed openings are not merely windows but curated viewfinders, capturing specific portraits of the landscape: a solitary oak tree, a distant hill, the expansive sky. The interplay of solid concrete walls and vast sheets of glass creates a rhythm of enclosure and release, making the occupant acutely aware of both protective shelter and boundless nature.
The success of this project is a testament to a holistic collaborative effort. It stands on the precise structural engineering of Elíptica, the sustainable installations planned by Sustentável, and the sensitive landscape design by Greengest, which ensured the transition from built form to native scrub was seamless. The construction by Matriz brought this nuanced vision to life with evident precision.
More Than a House: A Lesson in Attentiveness
Four years after its completion, the House in Fonte das Perdizes feels less like a new building and more like a natural outcrop that has always belonged. It proves that contemporary architecture need not be an alien imposition. By listening intently to the whispers of the wind, the quality of the light, and the rugged character of the earth, Gonçalobo Bonniz and his team have created a home that is both strikingly modern and profoundly ancient in its spirit. It is a sanctuary of quietness, reminding us that the most powerful architectural statements are often the ones that speak in a gentle, respectful tone to the world around them.