Çò deth Somèr house

A former barn, a typical Pyrenean construction, was the skeleton for building the project for this refuge, a cabin where its inhabitants can enjoy the long winter nights or the endless summer evenings. Like all houses in the village, this dwelling, place of lavish meals and long after-dinner conversations, was conceived to receive and take in whoever was in need.

Located at an altitude of over 1200 m, the project is imbued with traditional solutions and materials and, above all, the spirit with which these buildings were built. Nothing is superfluous. Everything strictly fulfils a function. This is the beauty of vernacular architecture which remains present in the original stone walls and in the copper bathroom fittings.

From the recovery of the beams to the solution for the framework made of simple wooden boards, everything in the main house carries the legacy of local traditions. Only the white that covers everything gives us the impression that it is a recent renovation.

On the outside, we have clear modern lines but with traditional material, wood, which evokes a barn next to a trough. This image reminds us that these buildings are always intrinsically linked to the land.

Photograph by Raúl Candales.