emptied house: a Seasonal refuge in Soto de Sepúlveda, Segovia
Estudio Veintidós’ Emptied House sees the transformation of a former rural stable into a seasonal dwelling located on the edge of a depopulated territory in the Riaza Mountains of Segovia, Spain. The project is developed within the remains of a stone and rammed earth structure whose roof and interior partitions were largely ruined. Rather than reconstructing the original volume, the intervention retains the existing perimeter walls and introduces a new spatial strategy based on subtraction, consolidation, and selective addition.
The design is structured around the creation of a central void, formed by emptying the interior of the existing envelope. This open space is configured as a courtyard that organizes domestic life while ensuring access to daylight, ventilation, and outdoor space. Positioned over the trace of an original water trough, a small longitudinal pool occupies the courtyard and contributes to the regulation of the microclimate. The courtyard also safeguards future environmental quality by maintaining light and air access in the event of new construction on adjacent plots to the west and south.
New architectural elements are arranged around the courtyard as three gabled pavilions. The volumes are visually linked by skylights and accessed from the street through an open-air passage leading to the first wing containing the living space. The new construction is assembled on top of the existing walls, generating varying setbacks on each façade that reveal the internal organization from the exterior. Each pavilion terminates in a skylight linked to the under-roof spaces, while the third volume takes the form of a hollow tower that functions as a viewpoint toward the surrounding landscape. This vertical element references the nearby Romanesque church bell tower, establishing a visual dialogue with the village context.
aerial image | all images courtesy of Estudio Veintidós
light, climate, and landscape shape Estudio Veintidós’ refuge
Circulation is organized through a permeable ambulatory surrounding the courtyard, equipped with large-format joinery that distributes access to the rooms and, via retractable staircases, to the attic spaces. Within the living area, a large opening cut into the rammed earth wall creates a visual connection between the interior courtyard and the distant landscape. To preserve the existing fabric, the most deteriorated areas of the rammed earth were stabilized and finished with lime mortar.
Material continuity between old and new construction forms a central aspect of the project. The existing stone and rammed earth walls are consolidated using lime-based pointing techniques characteristic of the region, which are extended to the new thermal clay facades. This approach produces a homogeneous surface in which differences between construction phases are legible as layers rather than contrasts. The new architectural elements are supported by a mixed structural system of concrete, timber, and steel, designed to work in conjunction with the preserved walls and to address issues of settlement, deformation, and material loss.
The designers at Estudio Veintidós address environmental performance through a series of passive bioclimatic strategies. These include a radiant floor system in contact with the ground, a continuous insulated interior envelope, rainwater harvesting, and the use of stack ventilation generated by the double-height bedroom volumes and the open courtyard. The courtyard pool further contributes as a hygrothermal regulator, moderating temperature and humidity while reinforcing the seasonal character of the dwelling. Through selective emptying, material continuity, and calibrated openings, Emptied House reinterprets a rural ruin as a seasonal refuge. The project positions the dwelling as an observation structure oriented toward climatic phenomena and the surrounding mountain landscape, establishing a domestic environment shaped by light, air, and seasonal change.
previous state
main entrance and hallway patio
hallway patio
inner hall and corridor
main patio
viewpoint
main patio
main patio and two-story corridor
patio detail
ceiling detail
main facade
project info:
name: Emptied House
architect: Estudio Veintidós
location: Segovia, Spain
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edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom
The post stone and clay rebuild former rural stable as a seasonal refuge in spanish countryside appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.