San House

The SAN House is located in a classic building in the center of Donostia, in one of the characteristic corners of the 19th century expansion area designed by the Basque architect Antonio Cortázar.

It is, like the rest of the buildings in the center, a building executed with a wooden structure and sandstone facades from the Igeldo stone quarries, a characteristic sign of the houses in the San Sebastian’s Ensanchearea.

Being its original use as one of housing, it became a clinic and after almost four decades it returns to its initial function, but this time in a more spacious, luminous and comfortable way.

Goals/strategy. The objective at the time of initiating the process was clear, besides creating a cozy home with personality, the SAN House had to be a spacious, bright home with a high level of comfort, energy efficient and accessible.

A duality between the imposing presence of the existing and the minimalism of the new, due to the use of flush doors and baseboards, hidden fittings and lack of handles.

Pillars and beams of wood and the stone uncovered in the viewpoint, dialogue with works of art and furniture such as the kitchen, designed by AAA (amaia arana arkitektura) exclusively for its owners.

Program/distribution. The 120m2 floor is accessed from an entrance area that continues with the large central daytime space consisting of kitchen, dining and living area, which, thanks to the number of openings to the facade, receives light throughout the day.

On each side, there are two large bedrooms. 

Comfort, Energy efficiency and accessibility.

The house is committed to strategies of energy efficiency and comfort, with a complete rehabilitation of its envelope and innovative systems such as, for example, the radiant ceiling Zehnder Nestsystems, with a higher performance and lower thermal inertia, which means a faster response than other systems.