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Raoul Hausmann. Dadaist refugee in Ibiza, during Nazi Regime (1933-36)

Raoul Hausmann was born in Vienna in 1886, as the son of an academic painter. In 1900, the whole family had moved to Berlin, where the young artist met the influences of Cubism, Expressionism and Futurism before becoming one of the founders of the Dada movement in Berlin in 1918. Two years earlier, Dadaism emerged in Zurich as a reaction to the World War I, and an iconoclastic questioning of the forms and objectives of art. However, the Berlin version of the movement adopted a more political stance: under the pseudonym Der Dadasophe, Hausmann played an important role, performing mostly institutional criticism in Germany during the years between the two world wars, until he started being persecuted by the Nazi regime.

As he didn’t find the good answers in fine arts and particularly in painting he was aiming for, Hausmann was possibly the inventor of photomontage, which consists of combining, without a defined plan, cuts of photography, newspapers and drawings to obtain a plastically new work that would assume a political, moral or poetic message. It emerges as a kind of visual anarchy, to become later an extended form of modern art. Besides photomontage, Hausmann is also known for being a pioneer of phonetic poetry, an experimentalist form where the word isn’t the only vehicle of meaning.

Dadaism emerges in 1916, in the middle of WWI, with the intention of destroying all pre-established codes in the art world. It is considered an anti-artistic, antiliterary and antipoetic movement, since it questions the very existence of art, literature and poetry with their respective norms. From the beginning, this movement presents not only a rejection of any tradition or scheme prior to it, but became a whole way of living.

Photo: “Mechanical Head - The Spirit of our Time” (1920) - Raoul Hausmann

Refuge in Ibiza.

Raoul Hausmann landed in Ibiza between 1933 and 1936, fleeing from Germany due to appearing on the list of “degenerate artists”, compiled by the Nazi regime. He arrived accompanied by his wife, Hedwig Mankiewitz, and Vera Broïdo, his lover, both Jews like him.

During his stay, Hausmann explored the most characteristic corners of the island. The simplicity, the morphology of its landscapes, the archaic customs of its inhabitants and its architecture quickly subjugated the artist. Thrilled by the material and cultural purity of the place, he focused mainly on any reference to anything that was intact or that had not undergone any post-industrial alteration.

Photo: Local one family home (Ibiza, 1934)

He discovered the importance of material culture in the rural architecture of Ibiza; which impregnated the exhaustive analysis that he made of these constructions and the morphology of the landscapes. Hausmann admired the sense of autonomy and self-sufficiency embodied in these peasant homes. He also admired the singular simplicity, the nobility and purity of its architectural forms, created exclusively to respond to the needs of man; an “architecture without architects” in which he observed something primitive as well as contemporary, with clear geometries and controlled proportions.

Hausmann began writing anthropological and historical essays about the island, and his images were published in various magazines. He made these houses one of the main reasons for his photographs as well as the inhabitants of Ibiza.

Photo: Hausmann’s portrait (1933)

His statements are represented on hundreds of typed pages and almost five hundred photographic negatives, as well as a book published by the artist called Hyle. The legacy of the artist illustrates the “virgin” Ibizan landscape, which sustained an isolated and archaic local culture. Both constituted the perfect stage for the experimentation and artistic development of Raoul; a harmonized environment, the result of the respectful material interaction of farmers who used natural resources only to respond to their primary needs, where technical limitations and natural supply conditioned the results.

These works would be complemented with Hausmann’s research tasks, identifying links between the architecture of Ibiza with references in other Mediterranean constructions and cultures; a fact that would also captivate later scholars, such as Rolph Blakstad from around the 1950s.

When the Spanish Civil War began, Hausmann joined the republican side and even managed to organize an international anti-Franco committee in Ibiza. But when the island fell into the hands of the Fascists, he was forced to abandon it and continue his exile in Switzerland. The following years were described as a bitter exile, during which his work was dispersed or destroyed. After finishing the Second World War in Europe, Hausmann settled in Limoges, France. There he continued his artistic production of which among others he resumed painting once again, which he had left aside for so many years, and, according to local witnesses, he lived a fairly lonely life until his death in 1971.

Photo: Young woman in traditional daily dress (Ibiza, 1930s)

Hausmann was known to be a rebel throughout his life. He never took anything for granted and always fought against all kinds of certainties that he considered unjustified. His life was a continuous struggle to counteract the authoritarianism and German fanaticism of the time. In this light, he always maintained a Dadaist stance faithful to contradiction and profoundly questioned the state of the society and the so-called progress, at a time when it was considered purely beneficial; a general doctrine that later contributed to the disasters of two wars.

After settling down in Ibiza, however, Hausmann admired an archaic culture and way of life and a handcrafted utilitarian architecture. His studies of the Ibizan fincas, which were the result of many cultural influences (Phoenician, Egyptian, Roman, Arabic), were intended to demonstrate that: – “the idea of a single origin was a fiction, and that the so-called ‘purity’ of a people or culture didn’t exist”. His portraits of the peasants of the island differ drastically from the ‘racial’ portraits so practiced at that time. Halfway between study and poetry, he described those dignified subjects as “fierce and freedom-loving”, and he liked to portray them in photographs outside of their usual context.

One can argue that both the depth of Hausmann’s thinking and the extent of his centers of interest, as a writer, poet or as a photographer, are still undervalued nowadays. Reluctant to great artifices or effects in his photography, but remarkable how this simplicity of his images is at the same time modest while very real and powerful. The artist showed a special sensitivity for photography, with the intention of projecting small but intense experiences from which the viewer could extract his own particular appreciation.

In this article it is only possible to show a part of the work and creativity of this extraordinary artist, encouraging the reader with interest to look more deeply into further of Raoul Hausmann’s work.

Article source: https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/personalities/raoul-hausmann-and-his-refuge-in-ibiza/

References:Crespo MacLennan, G. (2017). Raoul Hausmann: fotógrafo en Ibiza. Diario: El País. Teixeira, C. (2018). La Ibiza Inédita de Raoul Hausmann. Blog online: Leer y tejer. Plataforma ArteEspaña. Entrada: Definición del Dadaísmo. (2005). Enciclopedia del Arte (online).Le Musee Rochechouart (2018). Entrada: The Raoul Hausmann Resource Library. Chateau de Rochechouart. 

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Traditional vs. Contemporary Architecture. The Energy Challenge

Vernacular architecture has evolved over many years to address the inherent problems of housing. Through a process of trial and error, populations have found over the centuries ways to deal with the extremes of climate. However, the influence of Western culture is omnipresent and the tendency to an internationalized construction style has resulted in a reduction of traditional solutions.

Logically, modern inhabitants demand higher standards of comfort in their homes. Such standards can be achieved through the use of machinery like air conditioning systems, which have considerable initial costs and an even greater energy demand in the long-term. However, with the careful use of traditional techniques it is possible to create thermal control improvements, since there are clear advantages to drastically reduce energy needs and a greater use of architectural style can create a more pleasant living space.

This does not mean that designers should imitate the paths of the past. Modern materials, technology and innovative construction techniques should be used in the search for efficiency and profitability. Despite this, ignoring our architectural heritage and overlooking the accumulated wisdom of the past involves neglecting the inevitable challenge for greater energy efficiency need in the s. XIX.

The wisdom of popular construction provides us with the protection of unfavorable climatic conditions and achieve a comfortable microclimate are the primary objectives of this architecture, as well as design buildings that are in harmony with the harsh climates of its various regions.

In traditional architecture, the internal thermal regulation mechanism is incorporated in the building itself. It takes into account the topography, construction, morphology, even the layout and use of internal spaces participate in the function of the mechanism of thermal regulation.

However, internal conditions abstained considerably from the current comfort requirements. Rapid and spectacular advances in the technology of heating and air-conditioning installations for refrigeration, as well as other technical innovations and international design influences, have displaced the architecture of traditional values and principles.

Mechanization and internationalization led to the rejection of traditional methods and the lack of knowledge of the physics of construction deprived the structure of the building from its basic skills and left it at the mercy of the climate. Modern buildings have become climatically inept, with air conditioners replacing natural cooling, assuming a high energy consumption, as well as a cost reduction for construction companies and a huge profit for the energy industry.

Submission of architecture to the machine also leaves some problems of basic comfort conditions in the interior unresolved; such as cost problems, maintenance of mechanical facilities or energy over consumption. In Great Britain, for instance, buildings have shown to absorb a huge percentage of total energy consumption that reaches up to 50% of total on average.

Fossil fuel scarcity, as well as the growing degradation of the environment, have awakened the interest of the use of more ecological  materials, processes and energy sources and has made it necessary for our modern buildings to provide shelter with the least possible expenditure of energy.

This gave rise to a new approach to bioclimatic architecture, which considers the building as a whole from the beginning stage as a place of energy exchange between the interior and exterior, the natural and climatic environment. Consider the building as a living organism; a dynamic structure that uses the beneficial climatic parameters (solar radiation for winter, sea breezes for summer, etc.) while avoiding the most adverse climatic effects. In this approach, the mechanical systems are integrally interconnected with the architecture and must be taken into account as fundamental elements of the building.

This new approach seeks to evaluate the energy demands for heating and cooling in buildings, first of all analyzing the free energy systems that are available. The preliminary analysis of bioclimatic terrain graphics for architectural design allows to outline strategies for an appropriate building location in any season of the year, which could considerably reduce the energy cost and minimize the need for mechanical means, while considering high standards of modern comfort criterias.

Read The full article: https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architecture/traditional-vs-contemporary-architecture-the-energy-challenge/

https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architecture/traditional-vs-contemporary-architecture-the-energy-challenge/

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Modern Home of Exquisite Minimalism in Ibiza

Located in a rural area between Es Cubells, Porroig and Es Jondal, in one of the most desired areas of the south coast of Ibiza, this newly completed villa stands out above the rest of the island’s newly builded modern homes. A fact not hard to see, since it marks a clear difference for the quality of its materials, the elegance in contemporary, the iconic furniture, the avant-garde architecture and, of course, its location; presenting outstanding views facing south over a landscape of mountains and sea in the distance. A home designed with taste and dedication, both horizontally and aesthetically, offering full performance of its location, with the right orientation of indoor and outdoor spaces.

This is also an object that seeks to offer maximum privacy, but without being secluded, since there are several neighbors next to and in the nearby area. The property owns 2700 m2 of land, completely fenced and accessed by a private road with an electric gate. It is a plot of great quality, since its south-orientated, with more light throughout the year, sun downs in winter, summer cross-winds and a few other benefits which are found in the likewise south-orientated traditional Ibizan homes. In addition, as far as lifestyle is concerned, it is conveniently located between several desired places in the southwest of Ibiza, as well as 10 min. by bicicle to Es Torrent beach or less than 5 min. by car from Es Jondal beach. Ibiza Town and the airport are only about 10-15 min. drive away.

The main entrance to the house is the access an extensive and bright room in a diaphanous open space, 3’30 meters high ceilings and a large panoramic window of 14 meters long, with sliding doors that invite to the spacious front terrace and open up to the iconic landscape and the instensive blue seaviews. Living room, dining room and kitchen are connected in the same space and, despite being technically the same room, the living room is visually disconnected from the kitchen and the dining room by the walls of the access to the lower floor, creating in this way an autonomous and “personal” space, but without being disconnected from the life of the house. The dining room is flooded with light and leads to an open American style Warendorf kitchen of a sleek and timeless design.

From this main room one can access the lower floor through stairs, separated by three walls that enclose the cubicle-shaped access with large front glass. This strategic window allows natural light to enter the space of the stairs during the day, and for the nocturnal hours bands of indirect lights subtly illuminate each of the steps.

The lower floor has a large master bedroom, with en suite bathroom and dressing room, as well as a private garden, and three more bedrooms all with bathroom en suite. The bedrooms are all on the lower floor and, despite having a considerable surface area, the ceiling heights decrease with respect to the upper floor in favor of a more secluded and cozy feeling as it is the resting place. The bathrooms are very spacious and receive a lot of natural light, equipped with accessories of Italian design by Cocoon and functional designs of the German manufacturer Duravit.

The furniture in the home is scarce, but stands out for its marked originality. Each piece is consciously chosen to give the minimalist space a sophisticated character. The living room, for instance, consists of the Lord Sofa and a Kay Recamiere chaise lounge, both by Christine Kröncke. The dining room table is made of a single piece of Kauri wood, a gigantic tree endemic to the North Island of New Zealand (called by the Maori natives as The Father of the Forest), with a wood that is prized for its hardness, versatility and its rarity. This unique piece is combined with the classic Nordic design Wishbone chairs by Hans J. Wegner. 

Continue to full article: https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/unique-homes/modern-home-exquisite-minimalism-es-cubells/

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Self Sufficient Ancient Architecture & Lifestyle: The Ibizan Finca

The traditional rural house of Ibiza, also known as Ibizan finca, has been an object of study and fascination by many important people of several fields over time. What these first visitors found was an architecture that had hardly changed over the centuries, dated back to ancient origins. This was mainly because Ibiza, during most of its history, was a culturally and economically isolated society that had to use local resources and knowledge, by necessity. The method of construction of this house came from a popular wisdom that was transmitted from generation to generation, pursuing subsistence and practicality as their priorities. It was this practicality, together with simplicity, the functionality of each element and its integration into the landscape, which inspired about this unique archaic architecture and attracted the first visitors to this ‘remote island’ in the 1930s.

Among the architects who were drawn by the Ibizan rural house are Germán Rodríguez Arias or Josep Lluis Sert, among other architects from the GATEPAC group, or Erwin Broner, from the Bauhaus school. It also attracted well-known characters from other fields such as the Dadaist Raoul Hausmann, artist and photographer, who made a lot of photographs of these constructions, or the philosopher Walter Benjamin, writer and literary critic, who delved into his aesthetic theory attracted by the austerity and beauty of the Ibizan finca. Some of them spreaded this archaic architecture style in international exhibitions and, although the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) and the arrival of fascism interrupted the process, years later more scholars and artists continuously revisited and settled in Ibiza, motivated by this same fascination.

The Ibizan country house is defined by a building type of thick walls, composed of quadrangular modules and horizontal ceilings supported by wooden beams. It is a simple and sober architecture, which begins adding independent cubic modules that are articulated about a transverse rectangular space at the entrance, the main hall or porxo; each module has its own function and animal corrals are always separated from the main body. The whole set shows a fully functional home, often entirely absent of decorative elements, growing in relation to the needs of expanding the family or labour of the lands. It is also a continuously growing home, that at all stages keeps the appearance of a finished building.

Not a single house is ever the same as the other (which is common among houses prior to the industrial era), but all fincas have certain features in common that define them as an own architecture style. These general features of the original finca are:

Materials. Built by the farmer, it is essentially made of materials found in the same place: dry stone, juniper beams for the roof, sand, clay and marine plants.

Location. The house is ideally located on a high point of the side of a hill with rocks as natural foundation, taking advantage of landscape features and slope without overflowing on ground favorable to the cultivation.

Orientation. The home entrance is almost always facing south, leaving behind the mountain, protected from the north winds and thus continuously receiving sunlight.

Absence of ornaments. It is shown as a primarily austere, practical and functional home, surrounded by fields and fully adapted to the needs of the time in which it was built. Subsequently, decorative elements would arrive such as arches and balustrades of carved wooden forms, but these were relatively discrete and concentrated only on the main facade.

The walls are wide, almost one meter, and consist of dry stone and mortar. Most walls are whitewashed in both homes and churches, although sometimes presented showing bare stone. The walls that enclose the building may have a form of steep walls (inclination and thicker at the bottom part) to strengthen the structure and the defensive function.

The windows are small and formerly had no glass, narrower on the outside than on the inside, thus emulating a fortress. Continuous attacks and plunders of vandals and pirates over centuries forced the homes to have this double function. Another purpose of the small windows was to protect the inside from the sun in summer, contributing to the temperature insulation.

The roofs are flat and originally made up of three layers: juniper wood, ash and marine plants and a layer of clay, which acted as insulation and impermeable. On rooftops different fruits of the field were sunned and serve to collect rainwater that is channeled through a cistern.

The Ibizan finca is an consecution of adjoined and stacked cubic modules, shown as a construction of simple lines, flatness, enclosure, proportionality and human measures. Traditional Ibizan architecture finds its expression in the family house that is found in the rural environment of the island and, developing a specific typology, adapts to both the terrain and the needs of its inhabitants.

In the original interiors of the Ibizan finca, of which today only memories and some photographs remain, is the same strict functionality and austerity as marked by the outside of the building. Most of the rooms do not have a defined function, such as the large porxo or the kitchen, that have multiple uses. The scarce furniture and the absence of decorative elements in every room of the house expresses a singular simplicity, a purely utilitarian sense that makes the architectural elements acquire a greater role. The main source of incoming light is in the porxo, but it doesn’t usually have more openings than the entrance door and, because of the small windows, this main room shows the same kind of gloom as found in temples.

Islands in the island.

Since ancient times, the people of Ibiza break with the two types of typical settlements of any other Mediterranean enclave: communities that prioritized defensive conditions by focusing on peninsulas or hills, and those that prevailed trade positioning its populations near the sea. Instead, cottages in Ibiza had a settlement scattered throughout the territory of the island and its distribution depended on the agricultural qualities (arable, fertile soil), being the distances between them irrelevant. These circumstances turned them into a kind of islands in the island.

The consequence of this unusual isolation was that these houses had to be self-sufficient from the outset and, at the same time, include elements that offered defense and shelter, such as thick walls or the praedial towers. Even the churches, which were conceived as fortresses and shelters inviting houses to group around it, failed to materialize real villages until recent times and this occured only partially, as evidenced by the dispersion of rural households that until nowadays are rarely grouped together.

The dispersion of the habitat in Ibiza has been a constant since the Punic (Phoenician-Carthaginian) colonization. Throughout most of its history, the most profitable was to place the houses on the land they cultivated because arable soils were excessively separated. Even the Catalan conquest (1235) did not mean any change of habitat or cultivation method as they had for centuries with the Arab occupation.

Factors such as the isolation of the peasant houses, the low yields of their farms or the frequent pirate attacks led them not to rely on products and manufactured goods other than the basic, found nearby, pushing them to a near autarky situation. Therefore, homes and tools were made with the materials at hand, which explains the absence of building materials such as bricks or tiles. This dependency of the environment and the autarky of the peasant production unit are circumstances that explain the archaism of the Ibizan architecture.

From these unfavorable circumstances and the farmers’ economic situation, close to subsistence for most of its history, adaptations took place in these constructions that surprise nowadays, considering it a model of sustainable and bioclimatic architecture:

1. Environmental use and sustainability:

Using the terrain rocks as natural foundation, the estate is built using materials found on the spot, without manufacturing processes rather than the mixture of mortar or lime kilns. In addition, the finca is ideally located on the slope of a hill, leaving behind the mountain, on a high surface with a slight inclination; which serves to prevent humidity and torrential rain, while being protected from the northern winds. The flat roofs are also used to collect rainwater that is channeled through a cistern for later consumption.

2. Bioclimatic properties:

The thick walls and small windows insulate the outside temperature to keep the interior cool during the summer and warm in the winter, adapting the house to the climate of each cycle. The absence of glazing in the original fincas ensured the necessary ventilation for a perspiration of walls and roofs. The south-facing facades capture most of the sunlight in winter and more shade in the summer, while avoiding the winter winds from the north and allowing the entry of fresh winds in summer. Even the white of the walls had a role, by reflecting sunlight and prevent overheating of the building in summer.

The scarcity of forms and decorative elements shown by the ancient fincas is a phenomenon that was conditioned by the precariousness and the necessary practicality, revealing that these homes were not meant to be seen, but to be lived. Its interesting how it is precisely this aspect that makes this style so popular nowadays, but mainly by the visual property of the design and less for the practicality for which it was conceived, although in many senses it still remains a practical building.

However, until very recently the Ibizan rural house seemed to be detached from the process of transformation of history and was considered an archetype of popular architecture. Possibly it constitutes to be the last example of an age-old wisdom and an archaic form of life. Traditional Ibizan constructions were built without plans or specialization, but integrated into the same peer culture, it preserves the memory, the technique and the identity of a community.

Original article: https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architecture/the-ibiza-finca-a-guide-to-ibizas-traditional-rural-home/

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The Exclusive Development for 2019 in Ibiza: The White Angel Cala Comte

The White Angel (OD Group) is a new luxury housing development project just 1 km from the beach of Cala Conta, one of the most popular destinations in Ibiza. OD Group, to whom this promotion belongs, is already commercializing the 15 homes that all together are considered one of the most exclusive urbanizations on the island. The construction of the complex is planned to end in the summer of 2019 and the unit prices are currently between 2,800,000 and 3,300,000 euros.

The promotion is designed by the architect Víctor Rahola, originary from Barcelona and a reference today in the architecture scene of Ibiza. Rahola has proposed the plans of the houses in an L-shape, attributing them a design with a fine balance between tradition and avant-garde, bringing benefits of Mediterranean architecture together with a contemporary minimalist approach.

The catalan architect has made every effort to meet the expectations of the luxury lifestyle and at the same time ensure the sustainability of the environment. As Rahola himself tells, a year and a half of project have been needed to combine these two concepts, opposed in many of its elements, but not incompatible. Regarding sustainability, they have always tried to incorporate bioclimatic strategies to reduce energy demand: thermal (and acoustic) insulation, natural ventilation, sliding walls, passive protection, sun protection and garden roofs.

Each of the 15 units has 352 m2 of living area, with a terrace, two swimming pools, a garden and a basement. However, the surface of the plots can vary, between 600 m2 to 1000 m2, depending on the property unit. Each house has three floors, among which are the five bedrooms (two en suite). The garden and the main pool are on the ground floor. The main bedroom in the attic, with access to a large terrace with an infinity pool, from where you can enjoy the sea views and the famous sunsets of Cala Comte.

All homes of The White Angel offer the possibility of small customizations to the taste of their owners. In the complex there are three different types, which allow you to play with the variation of your own volumes. In reality the whole complex is projected as a “mat building”, a modulated system that by means of the diagonalization aims to generate the variety, as for example some interior spaces and the gardening could be different in all the houses.

Read more: https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/developments/the-white-angel-cala-comte-exclusive-development-2019/

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Josep Lluis Sert i López (Barcelona 1902 -1983) is considered one of the most important architects of the 20th century and was one of the introducers of modern architecture in Spain. He was a son of a bourgeois Catalan family of textile industrialists, but socially committed and with democratic ideals.

In 1923 he entered the School of Architecture of Barcelona and was critical of the teaching methods of that time. Therefore, together with Josep Torres Clavé he founded the Association of Students of the School (1926), the embryo of the future GATCPAC (Group of Catalan Architects and Technicians for the Progress of Contemporary Architecture). Sert finished his studies in 1929 and moved to Paris, where he worked in the architectuire firm of Le Corbusier. From then on both of them maintained a close professional and academic relationship.

In 1930, Sert and Torres Clavé promoted the foundation of GATCPAC and in 1932 the GATEPAC (Group of Spanish Architects and Technicians for the Progress of Contemporary Architecture). In its first board of directors were the architects Rodríguez Arias, Illescas, Churruca and Alzamora, and later Subirana, A. Bonet and others joined aswell. This was the introductory group in the State of the modern movement of architecture, “the Nouveau Spirit” and the rationalistic and avant-garde tendencies. This group also edited the magazine A.C. (Documents of Contemporary Activity), published between 1931 and 1937, which constituted a platform of knowledge of the artistic expressions and diffusion of the new tendencies, aswell as architecture and urbanism, photography, visual and decorative arts, literature, gardening and furniture. GATEPAC has also been involved in the improvement of other areas, with proposals such as the construction of schools, the reduction of illiteracy and basically the modernization of the Spanish education system. 

https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architects/josep-lluis-sert-and-the-gatepac-group/

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This modern home, situated on a hill in the middle of the wild nature of Ibiza, fuses the traditional native architecture with forms and elements of contemporary design. This personal design, created by Blakstad, is respectful with the environment and provides an atmosphere of cozy living, bringing a modern lifestyle approach to the local vernacular architecture of the island. This culturally sensitive approach to local architecture also reduces the visual impact on the surrounding natural and historic landscape of Ibiza.

The concept that is based on the original archaic architecture of Ibiza, provides benefits from an ancient popular knowledge related to the bioclimatic and the sustainability of the building. The flat roofs serve to collect rainwater, which is channelled into a cistern for later consumption. The thick walls and small windows serve to isolate the buildings from the outside temperature, so that the interior remain cool during the summer and stay warm in the winter, adapting to the climate of each season. The main facade, facing south, fully captures the rays of the sun in winter and has a greater shadow in summer, allowing a cool breeze to enter the home. In addition, the white painted walls reflect the sunlight and prevent the overheating of the buildings in summer.

The modern minimalist touch allows the transformation of the traditional rustic farmhouse of small dimension and dark interiors, into wide, luminous spaces and diaphanous inner distributions. A series of subtle interventions combine contemporary design with traditional architecture, maintaining the charm of pre-existing structures in order not to loose the warm essence of the rustic style. For the most part it applies that the method, techniques and construction materials are still used as in the old Ibizan farmhouses. Added to this are structural improvements such as increased size of the rooms, higher ceilings and extended windows and skylights, which assure a more bright and light flooded interior. The characteristic wooden juniper beams are still maintained in many of the ceilings and, due to the austerity of the minimalist design, these hardwood beams assume an increased ornamental relevance.

https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/unique-homes/blakstad-design-finca-intuitive-match-of-traditional-and-modern/

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Philippe Rotthier. Guardian of Archaic Science

https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architects/philippe-rotthier-guardian-archaic-science/

Philippe Rotthier was born in 1941. In 1964 he graduated with a diploma in architecture at La Cambre in Brussels. As a founding member, he collaborates with André Jacqmain at the Atelier d’Architecture de Genval from 1965 to 1972.

In his youth, traveled throughout the world, from the northern to the south hemisphere, also covering all types of islands: the Azores, the Canary Islands, Ireland, the Hebrides, Shetland Islands, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland and the Bay of Disko. In all of them he focused on the type of constructions, their techniques and forms, which would later serve him for his studies.

In 1973, he settled in Ibiza, where he built and renovated 80 houses true to the style of the traditional architecture of Ibiza. As a result of his studies on the vernacular architecture and the traditional Ibizan way of life, in 1984 he publishes ‘Ibiza. Le palais paysan‘, a complete essay on the technical wisdom of traditional Ibizan construction, associated with mythology and the set of rituals involved. This work of observation and research is associated with his construction practice and the houses that he builds in Ibiza are an exception within the mega tourist structure of the 1970s and 80s.

Read the full article: https://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architects/philippe-rotthier-guardian-archaic-science/

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La finca ibicenca. Arquitectura vernácula y modo de vida autárquico

La casa rural tradicional del campesino de Ibiza, también conocida como finca ibicenca, ha sido objeto de estudio y fascinación por parte de muchos personajes importantes de variados campos a lo largo del tiempo. Lo que se encontraron estos primeros visitantes fue una arquitectura que prácticamente no había variado a lo largo de los siglos, partiendo de unos orígenes fechados en la antigüedad. Esto fue debido principalmente a que Ibiza, durante la mayoría de su historia, fue una sociedad aislada cultural y económicamente que tuvo que valerse de recursos y conocimientos locales, los únicos a su alcance. El método de construcción de esta vivienda provenía de la sabiduría popular y se transmitía de generación en generación, persiguiendo la subsistencia y la practicidad. Fue esta practicidad, junto a la sencillez, la funcionalidad de cada elemento y su integración en el paisaje, lo que inspiró de esta singular y arcaica arquitectura y atrajo las primeras visitas de estudiosos a esta ‘isla remota’ en los años 1930.

Entre los arquitectos que atrajo la casa payesa ibicenca destacan Germán Rodríguez Arias o Josep Lluís Sert, del grupo GATEPAC-GATCPAC, o el alemán Erwin Broner, de la escuela Bauhaus. También atrajo a personajes conocidos de otros campos como el dadaísta Raoul Hausmann, artista y fotógrafo, que realizó una gran cantidad de fotografías de estas construcciones, o el filósofo Walter Benjamin, escritor y crítico literario, que profundizó en su teoría estética atraído por la austeridad y belleza de las finca ibicenca. Algunos de ellos se encargaron de divulgar esta arquitectura arcaica de Ibiza en exposiciones internacionales y, aunque la Guerra Civil Española (1936-39) y la llegada del fascismo interrumpiera el proceso, años más tarde volvieron a visitar e instalarse en Ibiza más estudiosos y artistas ya de forma contínua, motivados por esta misma fascinación.

Artículo completo: http://www.kelosa.com/blog/es/arquitectura/la-finca-ibicenca-guia-de-la-arquitectura-rural-tradicional-de-ibiza/

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

The Fall & Rise of Cala Vadella. Ibiza’s West Coast Development

Up to only 3 years ago, Cala Vadella was stuck in a crisis since the late 90s, when the entire neighborhood was dragged inexorably down to a state of lack in hotel occupancy, suspension of development works, local neglect, empty houses and an entire resort invaded by squatters. In autumn 2009, the hotel occupancy rates, turnover of restaurants and retail sales were still reporting widespread losses of ten percent. In Ibiza that means a awful unprecedented result.

Shopkeepers and neighbours explain that Cala Vedella used to be a glamorous place in the 80s and 90s, but at some point the neighborhood and the area in general had lost its luster. The results of decades of mismanagement became evident: dilapidated ruins of construction projects, standstill works indefinitely, numerous empty houses, decomposing traffic signs, salty tap water, among others. A good example was the planned mall that had to be build along the cliffs at the beach; but when more than a decade of the cliff collapsed, the construction company responsible had to shore up the cliff with hundreds of steel beams, to avoid further worsening. The result is anything but pretty, but didn’t seem to matter much.

Neighbours and people very familiar with the area tell broadly the same story. When tourism began to arrive to Ibiza, in the late 60s, Cala Vadella was a dream: a beach bar, a couple of thatched umbrellas and a handful of houses. In the 70s the first club was built and soon after came the other four holiday resorts. A decade later, German tourism agencies lined up to get a part of the vibrant clubs.

It was a simple business concept and promised good rewards. Investors built a complex and then sold the houses and apartments to private customers, who agreed to rent them to travel agencies during the summer season. In the 80s and early 90s, when business was booming, a combination of all-inclusive vacation packages and entertainment at all hours filled thousands of beds. It was the model to follow.

[...]

Read the full article: http://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/developments/ibizas-west-coast-the-fall-rise-of-cala-vadella/

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

La finca ibicenca. Arquitectura vernácula y modo de vida autárquico

La casa rural tradicional del campesino de Ibiza, también conocida como finca ibicenca, ha sido objeto de estudio y fascinación por parte de muchos personajes importantes de variados campos a lo largo del tiempo. Lo que se encontraron estos primeros visitantes fue una arquitectura que prácticamente no había variado a lo largo de los siglos, partiendo de unos orígenes fechados en la antigüedad. Esto fue debido principalmente a que Ibiza, durante la mayoría de su historia, fue una sociedad aislada cultural y económicamente que tuvo que valerse de recursos y conocimientos locales, los únicos a su alcance. El método de construcción de esta vivienda provenía de la sabiduría popular y se transmitía de generación en generación, persiguiendo la subsistencia y la practicidad. Fue esta practicidad, junto a la sencillez, la funcionalidad de cada elemento y su integración en el paisaje, lo que inspiró de esta singular y arcaica arquitectura y atrajo las primeras visitas de estudiosos a esta ‘isla remota’ en los años 1930.

Entre los arquitectos que atrajo la casa payesa ibicenca destacan Germán Rodríguez Arias o Josep Lluís Sert, del grupo GATEPAC-GATCPAC, o el alemán Erwin Broner, de la escuela Bauhaus. También atrajo a personajes conocidos de otros campos como el dadaísta Raoul Hausmann, artista y fotógrafo, que realizó una gran cantidad de fotografías de estas construcciones, o el filósofo Walter Benjamin, escritor y crítico literario, que profundizó en su teoría estética atraído por la austeridad y belleza de las finca ibicenca. Algunos de ellos se encargaron de divulgar esta arquitectura arcaica de Ibiza en exposiciones internacionales y, aunque la Guerra Civil Española (1936-39) y la llegada del fascismo interrumpiera el proceso, años más tarde volvieron a visitar e instalarse en Ibiza más estudiosos y artistas ya de forma contínua, motivados por esta misma fascinación.

Artículo completo: http://www.kelosa.com/blog/es/arquitectura/la-finca-ibicenca-guia-de-la-arquitectura-rural-tradicional-de-ibiza/

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

The Ibizan Finca. Traditional Architecture and Autarchy Lifestyle

The traditional rural house of Ibiza, also known as Ibizan finca, has been an object of study and fascination by many important people of several fields over time. What these first visitors found was an architecture that had hardly changed over the centuries, dated back to ancient origins. This was mainly because Ibiza, during most of its history, was a culturally and economically isolated society that had to use local resources and knowledge, the only ones available. The method of construction of this house came from a popular wisdom that was transmitted from generation to generation, pursuing subsistence and practicality. It was this practicality, together with simplicity, the functionality of each element and its integration into the landscape, which inspired about this unique archaic architecture and attracted the first visitors to this ‘remote island’ in the 1930s.

Among the architects who were drawn by the Ibizan farm house are Germán Rodríguez Arias or Josep Lluis Sert, from the GATCPAC group, or Erwin Broner, from the Bauhaus school. It also attracted well-known characters from other fields such as the Dadaist Raoul Hausmann, artist and photographer, who made a lot of photographs of these constructions, or the philosopher Walter Benjamin, writer and literary critic, who delved into his aesthetic theory attracted by the austerity and beauty of the Ibizan finca. Some of them spreaded this archaic architecture style in international exhibitions and, although the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) and the arrival of fascism interrupt the process, years later more scholars and artists continuously revisited and settled in Ibiza, motivated by this same fascination.

Read the full article: http://www.kelosa.com/blog/en/architecture/the-ibiza-finca-a-guide-to-ibizas-traditional-rural-home/

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

The Ibizan Finca. A Guide to Ibiza’s Traditional Architecture

The traditional rural house of Ibiza, also known as Ibizan finca, has been an object of study and fascination by many important people of several fields over time. What these first visitors found was an architecture that had hardly changed over the centuries, dated back to ancient origins. This was mainly because Ibiza, during most of its history, was a culturally and economically isolated society that had to use local resources and knowledge, the only ones available. The method of construction of this house came from a popular wisdom that was transmitted from generation to generation, pursuing subsistence and practicality. It was this practicality, together with simplicity, the functionality of each element and its integration into the landscape, which inspired about this unique archaic architecture and attracted the first visitors to this ‘remote island’ in the 1930s.

Since ancient times, the people of Ibiza break with the two types of typical settlements of any other Mediterranean enclave: communities that prioritized defensive conditions by focusing on peninsulas or hills, and those that prevailed trade positioning its populations near the sea. Instead, cottages in Ibiza had a settlement scattered throughout the territory of the island and its distribution depended on the agricultural qualities (arable, fertile soil), being the distances between them irrelevant. This circumstances turned them into a kind of islands in the island.

From these unfavorable circumstances and the farmers’ economic situation, close to subsistence for most of its history, adaptations took place in these constructions that surprise nowadays, considering it a model of sustainable and bioclimatic architecture. In this way, a climate of hot summers, little rain and wet winters and a mountainous landscape of scarce available land for cultivation, bring up the following adaptations to the buildings:

1. Environmental use and sustainability

Using the terrain rocks as natural foundation, the estate is built using materials found on the spot, without manufacturing processes rather than the mixture of mortar or lime kilns. In addition, the finca is ideally located on the slope of a hill, leaving behind the mountain, on a high surface with a slight inclination; which serves to prevent humidity and torrential rain, while being protected from the northern winds. The flat roofs are also used to collect rainwater that is channeled through a cistern for later consumption.

2. Bioclimatic

The thick walls and small windows insulate the outside temperature to keep the interior cool during the summer and warm in the winter, adapting the house to the climate of each cycle. The absence of glazing in the original fincas ensured the necessary ventilation for a perspiration of walls and roofs. The south-facing facades capture most of the sunlight in winter and more shade in the summer, while avoiding the winter winds from the north and allowing the entry of fresh winds in summer. Even the white of the walls had a role, by reflecting sunlight and prevent overheating of the building in summer.

This and many more will be explained in extend in the full article: The Ibizan Finca. A Guide to Traditional Rural Home of Ibiza

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

The Urbanisation Caló d’en Real. A work by André Jacqmain

Caló d’en Real is located in the municipality of San José de la Talaia, southwest of Ibiza, between Cala Moli and Cala Vedella. The complex was founded in 1974 as a project among several Belgian friends, who bought the land that formed the plateau and assigned the design to architect André Jacqmain. The initial philosophy of Caló d’en Real was to be a community of family and friends, which meant for these first residents that the design of all homes had to be conceived by the same architect, thus establishing a unique style.

André Jacqmain (Brussels, 1921-2014) graduated at the Academy of Fine Arts of Belgium in 1944, where he followed the teachings of the great architect Henri Lacoste and from whom he inherited the boldness of the architectural gesture. The first phase of his career is dedicated to single-family homes, an area in which he reveals as the creator of some of the most original forms of his generation. Against the functionalist discourse that dominated at that time teaching and profession, Jacqmains work is distinguished by an aesthetic approach recognized by the execution and the high quality of the details.

Read the full article to know more about Caló d’en Real and André Jacqmains imaginative style

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

Elegant Hilltop Finca in the Northeast Mountains.

A stately house on top of a hill in the middle in one of the most remote and peaceful places on the island. This unique property, surrounded by an almost untouched nature, offers panoramic views in all directions extending through the mountains to the sea. The house’s surroundings are literally a lookout. The particular garden consists mainly of a large number of hundred and thousand year old olive trees, of four different varieties, handpicked by the owner and brought here from as far as Portugal and southern Spain. The natural environment of the house is exuberant in terms of terrain and vegetation, with views that extend far beyond their own 6 hectares of land.

Read the full article: Hilltop Finca in the Northeast of Ibiza, by Kelosa Blog

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

Modern and cosy in autumn

Wingårdhs. The Mill House. Sweden. photos: Wingårdhs - Sauna & Guest House

[ibizasestatesandarchitectur-blog]

Modern Finca Can Basso. Respect, Creativity & Detail

At a green hillside and facing the tranquility of the valley, we find a real ancient Ibizan finca with the foundations of an original architecture, enhanced by a contemporary gesture, just enough to preserve the original spirit and adapting it to modern needs and style. Among rigorous lines and attention to detail, perfect simplicity contrasts in a visual game with creativity. Read the full article to know more about the modern reformed Ibizan finca Can Basso