Casa Cabeço do Resto was born out of the territory and its desire to find the light available on a very steep plot facing north. The construction is developed with an integrative attitude, respecting and adapting to the challenging topography. With a limited budget and a significant challenge, this project is a reflection of my personal research as an architect on Madeira Island: how to build on such complex terrain without resorting to large walled constructions? How to take advantage of the characteristics of the terrain to develop the house? How to integrate the architectural object into steeply sloping plots?

Architectural histories offer us many examples. The American houses of the middle of the last century, built on sloping land, brought innovative solutions. The “Case Study Houses” designed by architects such as Richard Neutra, Eero Saarinen and Pierre Koenig sought economical solutions with new materials and, whenever they faced sloping land, their formal solutions took advantage of the topography in a spectacular way and integrated it into the landscape. Among these architects, John Lautner is one of those who inspires me the most, using every centimeter of the area to create unique models and extraordinarily well-planned houses, taking advantage of all the nuances of the terrain to create exceptional homes.

In Madeira, the topography can be seen as a setback or, as I prefer to see it, an opportunity. The Cabeço do Resto House, widely recognized and published in architecture magazines and websites, exemplifies how the territory and solar exposure are fundamental tools in modulating the built space and guiding architectural intervention. The placement of the house in contact with the existing topography defines its multiple elevations, while the desire to integrate with the landscape defines the shape of the house, separating the private from the social program and establishing volumes that blend naturally into the terrain. The house seeks the highest elevation to take advantage of the sunlight, and the topography forces the project to unfold in three volumes: the private program adapted to the terrain, the social program elevated around the spectacular view and a vertical access that connects the two.

The result of this approach, where the architectural object is born from the fundamental references of the place and develops without collages or fads, deeply reflects my training and research as an architect. Portuguese architecture, in particular, values the idea that our buildings should have a sense of belonging to the place in which they are built.