Cala Domus

Cala Domus is a residential and hospitality project located on a rugged coastline, where the built form negotiates the boundary between the domestic interior and the expansive seascape. The title reflects the project’s core duality: the "domus" is the private home, a site of rest and refuge, while the "cala" is the cove, the shared public and ecological context that defines the site’s character. The architecture mediates these two realms through a porous layout that allows coastal views to permeate the interior while maintaining the privacy of individual dwellings.

Concept and Context

The project responds to the Mediterranean coastal typology, characterized by rocky outcrops and shifting light. Rather than a monolithic block, Cala Domus is organized as a series of discrete pavilions arranged according to the site’s topography. This preserves the natural drainage and vegetation while creating a rhythmic promenade that links the units. The master plan places the units along the upper terrace, keeping the lower cove area relatively open for ecological preservation and future public access.

Each unit is a prototype for a modular vernacular — a simple plan that can be extended or reduced depending on the occupant's needs. The architecture is a collection of geometries that reference the local landscape: rectilinear volumes that echo the nearby quarry stonework, and deep overhangs that provide seasonal shading.

Architectural Language

The materiality of Cala Domus is grounded in the local palette: a lime-washed render that softens the buildings against the grey and white of the rocks, and a reclaimed stone plinth that anchors the structures to the terrain. Wood is used for the joinery and the shading devices, adding warmth to the otherwise austere facade.

Key architectural features include:

• Porosity: The facade is punctured by framed apertures that frame specific views of the cove, turning the landscape into a lived interior element.
• Thermal Mass: The thick masonry walls provide thermal inertia, keeping the interiors cool in the summer and retaining warmth in the winter.
• The Promenade: A shared pedestrian path that winds between the units, creating a communal circulation spine and a space for informal social interaction.
• Modularity: Each pavilion is built from a standardized structural grid, allowing for flexible interior configurations while maintaining a coherent whole.

Programming and Experience

The project balances individual privacy with a shared commons. Each unit has a private terrace and a demarcated entrance, but the buildings are joined by a shared circulation spine and a communal hub at the project's center. This hub houses a common kitchen, a library, and a fireplace, serving as the social heart of the development where residents and guests can meet.

The experience of Cala Domus is defined by the transition from the private to the public. Moving from a secluded bedroom unit onto the shared promenade, the occupant is immediately presented with the scale of the bay. The deep eaves create shaded outdoor rooms that function as extensions of the living areas, blurring the boundary between inside and out. At night, the buildings are lit from within, appearing as a quiet constellation along the coast.

Planning and Sustainability

The planning of Cala Domus is inherently sustainable, relying on passive cooling, natural ventilation, and a minimized footprint on the ecologically sensitive cove. By concentrating the development on the upper terrace, the project avoids the need for extensive grading and preserves the lower shoreline. The modular construction approach also reduces waste and allows for easier repairs and future evolution of the units.

The project stands as a model for a respectful coastal architecture — one that recognizes the house as a container for private life and the cove as a shared ecological asset, and creates a built form that belongs to both.