Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha by Estúdio AMATAM

In the outskirts of Amora, Portugal, Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha by Estúdio AMATAM confronts the reality of restrictive suburban planning. Built within a small plot subjected to rigid subdivision regulations, the house emerges as a critique and counterproposal to the typological inertia that characterizes its surroundings. Where many such developments settle for repeating sealed volumes, this project attempts to carve openness and permeability from constraint. Its architecture is not defined by resistance but by transformation, articulating a spatial language that unifies programmatic requirements with sculptural precision.

Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha Technical Information

• Architects^1-11: Estúdio AMATAM
• Location: Rua Leite de Vasconcelos, Amora, Portugal
• Gross Area: 170 m² | 1,830 Sq. Ft.
• Completion Year: 2023
• Photographs: © Garcês

A continuous gesture that draws a house and unites its volumes.

– Estúdio AMATAM Architects

Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha Photographs

Conceptual Framework: Architecture as Resistance to Constraint

The conceptual departure point is the designers’ refusal to accept the fragmentation dictated by a divided program. Instead of separating the main dwelling from the annexed garage, the architects conceived a cohesive form. This formal unity is a continuous gesture that binds the volumes into one architectural act, simultaneously responding to functional needs and the broader context of suburban uniformity.

The result is a built form that suggests enclosure while inviting openness. The house unfolds as a sinuous volume defined by its edges and the voids it creates. It negotiates the tension between plot boundaries’ rigidity and domestic life’s fluidity. The gesture of continuity is both literal and conceptual, allowing the building to exceed the limitations imposed by its site and program.

Spatial Organization: Flow, Light, and Vertical Dialogue

The house is introduced as a compact, monolithic mass, but this initial perception is quickly deconstructed through a sequence of spatial experiences. Subtractions and incisions generate transparency and rhythm, while the careful orchestration of spatial transitions produces a dynamic interplay of compression and expansion. These operations are not ornamental but intrinsic to how the architecture generates experience.

A central vertical void anchors the interior spatial system. This atrium functions as a light well, circulation core, and visual hinge, organizing the house around a single spatial gesture. It demarcates two distinct zones: the private realm on the upper floor and the social and working spaces below. Yet, it does not isolate. Visual connections across levels and the continual presence of natural light dissolve any strict separation between these programs. The atrium becomes both a spatial and experiential link, elevating the everyday rituals of movement and occupation.

This compositional clarity is supported by a plan that privileges continuity over fragmentation. Circulation is fluid and unobstructed, allowing the inhabitant to engage with light, space, and material without interruption. Each transition is carefully framed to enhance orientation and spatial awareness.

Material Expression: Tactility, Monochrome, and Light Dynamics

Materiality plays a central role in reinforcing architectural intentions. Externally, the house is clad in a dark ceramic skin produced by Vale da Gândara. This material choice establishes a chromatic anchor at the base, accentuating the building’s horizontality and enhancing its sculptural reading. Despite the density of this ceramic envelope, the mass does not feel heavy. Instead, the house appears to lift from the ground, hovering just above its concrete base. This illusion of levitation is visual and conceptual, offering a sense of lightness despite the material’s inherent weight.

Internally, the palette is deliberately restrained. Monochromatic white and soft grey tones define the space, punctuated by subtle textural variations. The reduced palette supports an atmosphere of calm and introspection while foregrounding the architectural volumes and natural light as the primary protagonists of the spatial experience.

Natural light is not treated as an incidental feature but as a material in its own right. The zenithal light that enters through the atrium and the carefully positioned openings throughout the house animate the interiors throughout the day. The choreography of light and shadow on the surfaces reinforces the building’s spatial rhythms and enhances its temporal dimension.

Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha: Architecture of Subtle Gestures

Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha contributes to a lineage of Portuguese residential architecture that finds depth in restraint. Rather than relying on expressive gestures or material excess, the project engages in a quiet yet radical redefinition of domestic space within suburban constraints. Estúdio AMATAM demonstrates how careful composition, material control, and an understanding of light can produce a rich spatial experience even in the most unassuming urban contexts.

The house is not simply an object placed on a plot. It is a response to a set of legal, spatial, and environmental conditions, typically treated as obstacles. Here, those same constraints become tools for invention. The project resists fragmentation and asserts continuity by integrating the annex and main dwelling into a single gesture. By framing the void as the house’s core, it centers experience rather than form.

Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha Plans

Casa Pinhal Conde da Cunha Image Gallery

About Estúdio AMATAM

Estúdio AMATAM is a Portugal-based architecture studio founded by João Amaral and Manuela Tamborino, known for its thoughtful and context-sensitive approach to design. Their work often focuses on spatial clarity, material honesty, and the reinterpretation of existing structures, emphasizing transformation over replacement; through restraint and precision, the studio crafts environments that respond intelligently to contemporary living needs.

Credits and Additional Notes

1. Authors: João Amaral, Manuela Tamborino

2. Collaborator: Ruy Cardoso

3. Client: Private

4. Budget: €300,000

5. Electrical and Telecommunications: J. Agostinho Silva, Engenharia Lda.

6. Structural, Plumbing, Thermal and Acoustic: Maurício Dias, Engenharia Lda.

7. Interior Flooring: Neutral oak wood

8. Exterior Pavement: ARTEBEL, Ref.ª Grelha

9. Exterior Polished Concrete: SECIL 

10. Exterior Wall Cladding: Ceramic plaque by Vale da Gândara, color negro calabar 

11. Sanitary Equipment: ROCA