Lemon Tree House

Façade of Lemon Tree House at dusk, with the bay window and lit openings

Between party walls and on two levels, Lemon Tree House is one of the few single-family houses that survive in its urban fabric, on Calle Carteros, set between a courtyard open to the street and a private one at the back. It is built around concepts native to Mediterranean culture: calm, austere and simple spaces; courtyards with tall whitewashed walls that capture the sun's daily movement; breezes that run through the house from one side to the other. The materials are arranged with a strong tectonic and sculptural character. A Mediterranean architecture made of mass, shadow and reflection, where light builds as much as stone does.

Dining area of Lemon Tree House with a table and chairs beside the courtyard
  • Courtyard with whitewashed walls and tree shadows at Lemon Tree House
  • Shadow of the lemon tree on the courtyard paving of Lemon Tree House
Portico of stepped arches at Lemon Tree House at dusk

The façade keeps its composition: the bay window, the surrounds of the openings and the portico of stepped arches are unified in a single tone above a stone plinth. Towards the street, a screen of galvanised steel strips filters the gaze, and a mature lemon tree shades the entrance and gives the house its name.

  • Arch and window on the façade of Lemon Tree House
  • Façade of Lemon Tree House with the bay window and the steel-strip screen facing the street
Animation of the arched portico and courtyard of Lemon Tree House
Living and dining space of Lemon Tree House with the stone stair behind

The ground floor is a continuous space organised around a single core of tectonic character. Its position is enough to distinguish the entrance, the living and dining areas, the work zone and the kitchen, while the toilet is housed beneath the stair, reached from a corridor under the landing. The same stone that clads the floor also marks the thresholds and rises to form a stair of great width and sculptural presence, which incorporates the central pillar of the house.

Wide stone stair of sculptural presence in Lemon Tree House
Sectional axonometric drawing of Lemon Tree House
Work area of Lemon Tree House with a long desk and chair
Living room of Lemon Tree House with light curtains and diffuse light
Rear courtyard with white walls and large windows at Lemon Tree House
Dining area of Lemon Tree House with the stone stair behind the table

Light enters at both ends of the house. The rear courtyard, with white walls and a floor of volcanic clay, reflects it to the back of the dining room. The front courtyard softens the approach, allows for parking, and sets the house back from the street. The rooms open onto the rear courtyard, whose rebuilt walls guarantee a privacy hard to find in the city.

Floor plans of Lemon Tree House
Dining table with light and cast shadows in Lemon Tree House
  • Room in Lemon Tree House with a painting and a chair
  • View along the corridor towards the kitchen of Lemon Tree House
Kitchen of Lemon Tree House with a continuous worktop and window
Rear courtyard with white walls and volcanic clay paving seen from inside Lemon Tree House
Section of Lemon Tree House
  • Continuous light-timber panelling on the first floor of Lemon Tree House
  • Built-in bench beneath the curtained window on the first floor of Lemon Tree House
Whitewashed walls of the rear courtyard of Lemon Tree House beneath the sky

On the first floor, the stair space leads into an open area continuous with the ground floor, from which the bedrooms and the upper room are reached. A continuous panelling of pale timber envelops the rooms and integrates doors and wardrobes, lending the floor a warmer, more intimate atmosphere.

Opening above the stair of Lemon Tree House
Upper room of Lemon Tree House with armchairs, low tables and curtains
  • Steps and light-timber bench on the first floor of Lemon Tree House
  • Landing on the first floor of Lemon Tree House
Timber shelving and cupboard beside a curtain in Lemon Tree House
Planter and timber bench in the courtyard of Lemon Tree House
Lemon tree and entrance gate of Lemon Tree House

(Photo)

David Zarzoso

(Press)

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