— Villa

Casa El Risco

Inhabiting the cliff everyone had given up on

At 169 meters above sea level, on a slope once thought uninhabitable, this house adapts to the void and hovers above it. An invisible home that transforms a challenge into landscape.

On a steep slope in Málaga, once dismissed as unbuildable, El Risco finds its place. Despite breathtaking views over the bay, the plot had been abandoned—too steep, too rocky, too complex.
 
That’s precisely what made it extraordinary. The house responds to the terrain with a C-shaped plan, embracing the mountain and using the hardness of the rock as both structural and spatial support.
 
Hidden from view, the house rests 169 meters above sea level. It blends quietly into the hillside, respecting the topography and adapting precisely to the contour lines. What once seemed like a limitation becomes the essence of the design.

The architecture takes full advantage of natural resources: solar orientation, cross ventilation, thermal mass. The impact on the site is minimal—both visually and environmentally.
 
Materials include exposed concrete with wooden formwork texture, steel, glass, and natural wood. Light patios carve into the structure, bringing in air and light. Floor-to-ceiling windows open the interiors to the Bay of Málaga, without exposing the house to the outside.
 
The rock cuts through the interior, graffiti has been preserved as memory, and native vegetation has been restored. El Risco is not just a house—it’s a quiet act of belief in the unbuildable.

Construction by gruporedpoint

Difficulties
— 45% slope, almost a cliff
— Rocky terrain with native vegetation and pine trees
— Urban regulations only allowed construction in a C-shaped layout
— Highly complex and underestimated plot
Achieved goals
— Making a once-unbuildable plot livable
— Full integration with the natural surroundings
— Precise adaptation to topography and urban regulations
— Invisible home from the outside, yet open to the landscape
— Use of natural resources: sunlight and cross ventilation
— Minimal visual and environmental impact
— Preservation of original graffiti and replanting with native species
Awards
  • DNA Paris Design Awards 2025
    Farmani Group
  • Architizar A+Awards, Finalist 2025
    Architizer