Architecture

Bathyard home makes for sociable soaks

Bathyard home makes for sociable soaks
The Bathyard home was completed in 2015
The Bathyard home was completed in 2015
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard Home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard Home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
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Architectural drawing of Bathyard home
The lounge will be used for hosting movie nights
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The lounge will be used for hosting movie nights
The oculus is designed to promote cross-ventilation
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The oculus is designed to promote cross-ventilation
The rest of the home is decorated simply
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The rest of the home is decorated simply
Bathyard home, by Husos Architects, involved the renovation of a Madrid apartment
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Bathyard home, by Husos Architects, involved the renovation of a Madrid apartment
Bathyard home, by Husos Architects, involved the renovation of a Madrid apartment
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Bathyard home, by Husos Architects, involved the renovation of a Madrid apartment
Taking a typical 1900-era Madrid apartment with a total floorspace of 130 sq m (1,400 sq ft), Husos Architects (and construction firm Atipical) demolished the non load-bearing partition walls to create a totally new layout
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Taking a typical 1900-era Madrid apartment with a total floorspace of 130 sq m (1,400 sq ft), Husos Architects (and construction firm Atipical) demolished the non load-bearing partition walls to create a totally new layout
The lounge can be sealed off with a curtain across the doorway
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The lounge can be sealed off with a curtain across the doorway
The kitchen
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The kitchen
The typical 1900-era Madrid flat measures 130 sq m (1,400 sq ft)
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The typical 1900-era Madrid flat measures 130 sq m (1,400 sq ft)
Door leading to the bathroom
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Door leading to the bathroom
Local firm Husos Architects and construction company Atipical knocked-down the non load-bearing partition walls to create a new layout
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Local firm Husos Architects and construction company Atipical knocked-down the non load-bearing partition walls to create a new layout
There's a greenhouse in the bathroom for the green-fingered owner
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There's a greenhouse in the bathroom for the green-fingered owner
There's a greenhouse in the bathroom for the green-fingered owner
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There's a greenhouse in the bathroom for the green-fingered owner
The Bathyard home was completed in 2015
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The Bathyard home was completed in 2015
Plants are fed by a drip irrigation system
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Plants are fed by a drip irrigation system
An oculus opens onto the living room, and is designed to promote cross-ventilation
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An oculus opens onto the living room, and is designed to promote cross-ventilation
Close-up shot of the sliding partition screens
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Close-up shot of the sliding partition screens
The pull-down bench for guests
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The pull-down bench for guests
Shot of the sink area
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Shot of the sink area
View gallery - 27 images

Generally speaking, most inner-city apartments feature sociable areas like a lounge and dining room, while the bathroom is much more private. Bathyard home turns this expectation on its head. The Madrid apartment was re-arranged by Husos Architects to make the bathroom into the focal point of the home and an area for hanging out with friends.

Taking a typical 1900-era Madrid apartment with a total floorspace of 130 sq m (1,400 sq ft), Husos Architects (and construction firm Atipical) demolished the non load-bearing partition walls to create a totally new layout. The team then reoriented the interior toward the south to maximize natural light and heat from the sun, while also installing new insulation and underfloor heating.

The home is simply furnished, and includes two bedrooms, a lounge, study, dining area, and a kitchen, but the bathroom is the most interesting room. It comprises a social area with bathtub and an additional smaller room with toilet and shower.

As the owner is a keen gardener, an indoor greenhouse is located next to the south-facing window, while a movable table and novel pull-down bench are available for visitors. An oculus opens onto the lounge to promote cross-ventilation and provide a visual link between the two areas.

There's a greenhouse in the bathroom for the green-fingered owner
There's a greenhouse in the bathroom for the green-fingered owner

"With simple modifications, the project reoriented a large part of the house to the south," explains Husos Architects. "This was achieved by creating a new type of domestic interior: a bathyard, a space that generates a new 'exterior' inside the apartment and lends passive thermal and light comfort to the entire home.

"It is a place where different activities can overlap and be shared, such as trying on clothes, enjoying breakfast, or having a conversation while one is taking a bath and the other is sitting on the folding bench."

Husos Architects reports that the new layout, in addition to the new insulation it fitted and the re-orientation toward the south, combine to maintain the interior temperature at around 18° C (64.5° F) during most winter days without using the underfloor heating.

The Bathyard home was completed in 2015. The video below, by Imagen Subliminal, shows it in use.

Sources: Husos Architects, Imagen Subliminal

Bathyard home

View gallery - 27 images
2 comments
2 comments
stonesarah
Yeah, I'd like to add more, Using Fab Glass frameless shower doors for your bathroom makes it looking more attractive.
Timelord
Dagwood Bumstead would be proud. People are always barging in while he's in the bath. Although this is really just a variation on a pretty old layout. Late 19th and early 20th century tenements in New York City often had clawfoot bathtubs in the kitchen, next to the kitchen sink. There was no separate bathroom sink and only the water closet had its own little room, for obvious reasons. Personally, I'd rather have a Jacuzzi as the centerpiece of the living space.