Cork House is a modern two-story house located in Aroeira, Portugal, designed in 2021 by Inês Brandão.

Description
The project is (built) in Aroeira, a pine forest area on the south side of Tejo River. Since the 70s-80s, it became an area for weekend and holiday homes, due to its proximity to the Portuguese coast. As a result, there was an abrupt division of land, resulting in the devastation of the pine forest area.
For us, as architects, it is imperative to counter this careless trend of replacing pine trees with construction. Our goal was to integrate the building into the surrounding landscape, by choosing a strategic position to settle the house and by selecting cork as the main covering layer – a camouflage around the trunks of the pine trees. The program presented to us by the client was based on the desire to build a special place where his family and friends could gather. The house, on the one hand, should have a practical and playful character, which would encourage an active social life, and on the other hand, it should allow the creation of a shelter for himself.
The house is developed in two volumes, with opposite directions – a longitudinal body with one floor for the social area and another with two floors for the private area of ??the house. These volumes are articulated through a main circulation axis that, starting from the entrance, establishes a connection with the private areas, extending itself to the social area. On the...