Modern and Traditional Potxonea House by OS3 Arkitektura

Usually the great capitals of the world have old and new buildings. There is always an old side of the city, the historical centre and the modern side of the city which you can admire. Our capital, Bucharest is part of these capitals too but it is still working at its historical centre which needs rehabilitation. The buildings are old and deteriorated, faded and in a bad shape so that a good rehabilitation will try to keep them alive and help them keep their historical charm.

In Spain, in Usurbil, on Irazu Street 4 there is Potxonea House which belongs to a set of buildings that make up the historical city-center and which also needed rehabilitation. The set separates two large public areas: Dema plaza (the main plaza of Usurbil) and Askatasuna Plaza.

Although the Potxonea building had a residential use in the past then it had been in poor structural condition and empty for many years. The Municipality is the owner of this building which is also the client for OS3 Arkitektura which took care of the rehabilitation of this building. Thus, the new design of the building included a new façade for the building in order to broaden its openings and let the natural light invade the northern side of this building.

The façade of the building like its interior is a combination of modern and traditional. There was used tinted black for the outer shell of wood but the natural finish is left in the entrance of the building and it also extends in the interior of the building. This combination represents a balance which tries to be preserved between past and present, especially when the reference is made to a historical building used for cultural purposes.{found on archdaily and pics by Jorge Allende}.