Arseniy ValterArchitectureContact
IE University / Design Studio 72024 / Madrid, Spain

Matrioshka

Residential towers and shared landscapes designed around different households and forms of communal life.

A complete tower axonometric showing the residential volume, roof garden and shared public ground.View at full size
A complete tower axonometric showing the residential volume, roof garden and shared public ground.

About the project

A neighbourhood proposal in Madrid organised through layers of private living and shared space. Residential types for different households sit within a system of gardens, community rooms and workspaces. Unit studies, building sections and a wider landscape plan connect the scale of the home with that of the neighbourhood.

Location
Madrid, Spain
Contribution
Architecture / Housing research / Representation
Context
Academic design proposal / IE University

Reading the neighbourhood

I began with the spaces and services already around the site: schools, places of worship, care facilities and cultural centres. The proposal grows from this reading of the neighbourhood. Connections, smaller areas and shared meeting places organise the move from the existing streets to a new residential landscape.

Site photographs / open ground, trees and surrounding streetsView at full size
01.01

Site photographs / open ground, trees and surrounding streets

Existing neighbourhood / community, cultural, health and educational facilitiesView at full size
01.02

Existing neighbourhood / community, cultural, health and educational facilities

Building heights and housing types / the surrounding urban fabricView at full size
01.03

Building heights and housing types / the surrounding urban fabric

Urban strategy / connectivity, segmentation, social nodes and zoningView at full size
01.04

Urban strategy / connectivity, segmentation, social nodes and zoning

Three ways of living

The housing studies follow three groups: Urban Nomads, Family Nesters and Artful Solitaires. I tested how each home could hold everyday routines, work and time alone, while giving residents access to shared spaces. The plans and cutaway drawings show the different layouts and the planted edge between the rooms and the facade.

Household studies / Urban Nomads, Family Nesters and Artful SolitairesView at full size
02.01

Household studies / Urban Nomads, Family Nesters and Artful Solitaires

Shared programme / overlaps between cultural life, work, care and communityView at full size
02.02

Shared programme / overlaps between cultural life, work, care and community

Artful Solitaires / cutaway axonometric of the home and its curved planted edgeView at full size
02.03

Artful Solitaires / cutaway axonometric of the home and its curved planted edge

Family Nesters / bedrooms around a shared kitchen, dining and living spaceView at full size
02.04

Family Nesters / bedrooms around a shared kitchen, dining and living space

Family Nesters / cutaway axonometric connecting rooms, terrace and facadeView at full size
02.05

Family Nesters / cutaway axonometric connecting rooms, terrace and facade

Urban Nomads / compact home plan with a terrace at the outer edgeView at full size
02.06

Urban Nomads / compact home plan with a terrace at the outer edge

Urban Nomads / cutaway axonometric of the compact homeView at full size
02.07

Urban Nomads / cutaway axonometric of the compact home

From home to shared ground

A continuous landscape connects the residential buildings with gardens, paths and places to gather. Inside the buildings, communal uses sit between the residential floors. Kitchens, workspaces and rooms for exercise extend domestic life beyond the individual apartment. The plans and sections follow this relationship from the neighbourhood to a single building.

Site axonometric / the proposal within the surrounding neighbourhoodView at full size
03.01

Site axonometric / the proposal within the surrounding neighbourhood

Neighbourhood plan / residential buildings within connected public landscapesView at full size
03.02

Neighbourhood plan / residential buildings within connected public landscapes

Public-space plan / play, planting, seating and ground-floor shared roomsView at full size
03.03

Public-space plan / play, planting, seating and ground-floor shared rooms

Neighbourhood section / changes in ground level and building heightView at full size
03.04

Neighbourhood section / changes in ground level and building height

Residential floor plan / apartments, central circulation and common areasView at full size
03.05

Residential floor plan / apartments, central circulation and common areas

Living, yoga and dining / shared rooms within a residential floorView at full size
03.06

Living, yoga and dining / shared rooms within a residential floor

Vertical programme / shared uses between residential floorsView at full size
03.07

Vertical programme / shared uses between residential floors

Common domesticity / section through homes, an interior garden, a playground and the roofView at full size
03.08

Common domesticity / section through homes, an interior garden, a playground and the roof

The building edge

The facade studies bring the planted terraces, outer skin and building structure together. The environmental drawings explore shading, ventilation, roof planting, solar energy and water reuse as parts of the proposal. Construction sections move closer to the facade connections. The final views return to the scale of someone walking or sitting in the shared landscape.

Environmental proposal / double-skin facade, planted roof, solar energy and water systemsView at full size
04.01

Environmental proposal / double-skin facade, planted roof, solar energy and water systems

Construction section / floor edges, planting and the layered facadeView at full size
04.02

Construction section / floor edges, planting and the layered facade

Facade connection / outer skin, supporting frame and floor structureView at full size
04.03

Facade connection / outer skin, supporting frame and floor structure

Shared landscape / stepped ground and seating around treesView at full size
04.04

Shared landscape / stepped ground and seating around trees

Shared landscape / paths, planted areas and places to pauseView at full size
04.05

Shared landscape / paths, planted areas and places to pause

Scope & credits

Architecture, research & representation - Arseniy Valter

Academic design proposal / IE University