The hall of doors | CRUX arquitectos

When we find ourselves in front of several doors, we wonder what may be behind them, the intrigue is aroused and imagination unfolds.

The commission

Elena and Pepe's apartment is located on the ground floor of a residential building in Manises. Its excessive compartmentalization, the rare use of some of the rooms and the need for a spacious welcoming space for visitors and friends led this couple to the challenge of updating their home.

The layout is determined by the proportions of the space as much as by its limits, the location of the services, the structure of existing pillars and the possibilities of ventilation and lighting.

This renovation seeks to consolidate a large well-lit and ventilated multifunctional space, which welcomes visitors and in turn allows independent and simultaneous everyday uses.

The strategy is to generate a great stage for life, a unique space with a curtain wall that hides or activates the perimeter rooms.

The theatre curtain wall

A modular linear element of wood with constant height and thickness runs through, articulates and filters the relationship between the central space and the perimeter rooms.

It constitutes a continuous interior façade that absorbs the structure of pillars, integrates storage and houses the access to the different rooms that support the common space. With its unifying oak texture, it is the background for everyday activities.

The hall of doors

Several doors modify the stage when operated: closed, open, folded, unfolded, blind and transparent.

When open, we discover a reading room with a terrace, a bedroom, a kitchen or servant spaces such as bathrooms and a laundry room. We can either come in or integrate them into the central space, expanding their dimensions, modifying their lighting, unifying activities. In each iteration, the space is transformed and modified according to the needs, generating an oscillating fluid place.

Color and memory

The incorporation of color both unifies and singles out each small room within the system. The chosen palette –green, yellow, blue and red– is extracted from the traditional decorative tiles of Manises, enticing the memory to awaken.

The plain color, when in contact, dyes the served space changing its perception, either due to light, location or quantity. Its relative position in the horizontal planes, floors and false ceilings unifies the strategy.

Thereof we find the identity and character of the renovation: each use, each location in space can be referred to via the color behind each door.