Cozy House by 3r Ernesto Pereira in Marco de Canaveses, Portugal

Project: Cozy House
Architects: 3r Ernesto Pereira
Location: Marco de Canaveses, Portugal
Area:  1,506 sq ft
Photography: João Morgado

Cozy House by 3r Ernesto Pereira

The Cozy House is a remarkable project nestled among the nature of Marco de Canaveses in Portugal. It sits on a plot surrounded by chestnut trees with spectacular open views of the valley below. This house was designed by 3r Ernesto Pereira studio, the same team behind the Silver Wood House project in Mindelo.

Looking at this project, it is the feelings we experience that leave their mark when thinking, walking and living through it.

This project is clearly inspired by the site — a plot surrounded by chestnut trees, deeply embedded into the hillside, with a stream running along the slope and an excellent open view of the other side of the valley perfectly blending into the natural landscape.

This rural setting led to an idea that does not try to impose itself on the surrounding nature but rather merges, hides and transforms with it. This gave rise to the concept of the 'Cozy House'.

Thus the house is placed on site and 'recedes' from existing trees, highlighting lightness and preservation of the surrounding nature. Two elements — roof and floor — open to the landscape and are interrupted at contact with a tree. This gave rise to terraces that bring dynamics and movement into the house, marked by a clear rhythm of wooden columns supporting the roof with garden. The rest is transparency and glass, the only solution that makes sense in this situation.

During summer, dense foliage 'absorbs' the entire house making it almost invisible while protecting the interior from harsh sunlight. In winter, deciduous trees lose their leaves, allowing sunshine to enter and warm the house, making it slightly more noticeable among bare branches.

Both inside and outside, life amid the forest or in harmony with it — a unique project hard to explain but nourishing our desire for life.

–3r Ernesto Pereira