Ildefonso Aguilar’s house is decidedly not “traditional” Lanzarote. That is, not one of the blocky, white-washed buildings with a bright green or blue door that the Canary Islands are known for. Aguilar’s home, built in 1976, carries the same reddish hue as the island’s famous Montañas del Fuego. And it is as quirky as the island’s distinctive windmill art.

The mountains and windmill sculptures are both the result of profound forces of nature that shaped Lanzarote, and ultimately, Aguilar’s home: first, the volcanic eruption of 1730 that lasted six years and buried the island in lava and ash, and second, César Manrique, the postmodern artist who created a persona for the island in the ’60s, and then fought to protect it from overdevelopment. Now, three hundred years after the eruption, the island still looks like a scene from The Martian, and 30 years after Manrique’s death, his artistic style and eco-friendly mandates still rule.

Aguilar has been awarded the Gold Medal of the Canary Islands and called Manrique’s “spiritual successor” as he's also an artist-advocate. But in contrast with Manrique’s art, which celebrated bold and colorful elements, artifice alongside nature, Aguilar’s work hums with quiet contemplation, exploring the island’s natural elements with philosophical realism.

Like his art, Aguilar’s home, dubbed La Ameba, incorporates the island into its design. Its living spaces burrow beneath the volcanic rock, and its external structure elevates the lava onto its surfaces so that rock and house meld into something that is part art, part landscape. While Aguilar’s photographs and music are atmospheric and ruminative, capturing the island’s unspoiled landscape and some of its desolation, the house has a whimsical quality. The asymmetry, the color, the childish shape of the palms and exterior lamps invite play and creativity—the perfect house for an artist.

Dwell asked the artist about life, art, and architecture on Lanzarote:

One of Spain’s Canary Islands, Lanzarote is protected as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. How has the insularity of the island influenced your artistic development?

It has been essential to live in a physical space as powerful and captivating as the island of Lanzarote. My visual and emotional experiences of the volcanic landscape inspire me every day. The steadfast appearance of this landscape has led me to examine and reexamine its beauty and its profound poetics. Insularity has marked and limited this space, and it has allowed me to have a level of concentration that was necessary for the development of my sensitivity and creativity as an artist.

How was your relationship with César Manrique? Was it liberating to grow up in a place so defined by an artist?

Very good, first, as an admirer of his pictorial work, I visited his studio frequently, and later, when he began to intervene in the protection of the island’s landscape, I was part of the team that he created to champion his cause.

I was maturing as an artist at the same time that Manrique was setting guidelines to contain development. While I was a close observer of his painting technique and style, it was never difficult for me to search out and define my own identity as an artist.

How does the landscape of Lanzarote affect you? Do you find the constant presence of nature—the sea, the wind, the sand—calming and relaxing or forceful and energizing?

Of course it produces a sensation of very powerful energy in me, but at the same time, an intense serenity that makes me reflect on the genesis of the island and extract from those landscapes what is not perceived at first glance. Art helps me to look at it and feel it with greater depth.

I believe nature inspires art, and also that an artist can use an art form to enrich nature’s capacity to emote.

How would you describe the typical architecture of Lanzarote?

The most traditional architecture of the island is very basic and completely functional, designed for inward-focused living. The construction was based on stone and mud with almost no decorative elements. Now, tourism has changed the architectural expectation and needs, and there’s access to better-quality materials. Even today, designs are still generally rooted in tradition, and following Manrique’s guidelines, building heights are restrained and all development is done with utmost care and attention to the natural environment.

Tell me about your house.

We built my house and studio in 1976. Given the isolated location, removed from any of the island’s white-washed, traditional architecture, I decided we could do a more unique, contemporary design. It was important to me that it feel integrated into the landscape, so we painted it the same earth color as the mountains that surround it.

How well does the home function as your studio?

We put great care into making sure the design would suit me as an artist, in all of my artistic disciplines: painting, music, photography. I paid special attention to natural light patterns to make sure the studio would receive plenty of light, though as it turns out, much of my work is done outside. I have found it very important to define the areas dedicated to family life and the one dedicated to my work, although they are perfectly connected to each other.

Why was it important to you to incorporate natural lava rock into the house design?

It gives a feeling of the constant movement and invasion of nature. To enjoy the beauty of the volcanic rock constantly in my daily work, the sea of lava that surrounds the building, even penetrating to the interior in certain rooms, makes me feel more linked to nature.

How did you approach the landscaping for your home?

I wanted to give great importance to the exterior area. In our climate, we spend a lot of time outdoors. I have also taken care that the lava garden contains very few plants and that they are, basically, those that grow naturally in this environment, plants that need very little water and are very resistant to the local climate.

How important are the exterior features of this house?

Much of our time is spent outside, the terraces are oriented and protected from the wind, so everything focuses on observing the environment and harmoniously coexisting with it. I really enjoy the volcanic material that covers the entire garden and that highlights the rocks and lava platforms as contemporary sculptures.

How did you choose furnishings for the house?

Having a well-defined personal sensibility and a clearly identified professional activity, it has not been difficult at all to create and install the necessary accessories to feel comfortable. Much of the furniture is integrated into the architecture.

I believe that what I do is timeless, it is not conditioned by fashions or latitudes. Instinct, harmony, and aesthetics define what I need to feel comfortable and effective.

To what extent does the house enable and encourage sustainable living?

I think it is quite good, it is not necessary to use heating or air-conditioning since it is built paying close attention to its thermal insulation. Also, it has a photovoltaic installation that produces enough solar energy for its sustainability.

It is also highly advisable to take traditional wisdom into account. The traditional architecture of the island is very wise and without any technology it is possible to maintain the climate inside the home in a very comfortable way. Of course, the climate on the island doesn’t vary much, and the sea of lava also helps maintain an almost constant temperature inside the house all year round, so life in the house hardly requires heating and cooling systems.

What is your favorite space?

The studio where I work.

Describe a typical day for you at home.

I usually get up quite early, have a very quiet breakfast, do my errands, essential mailings, and paperwork. I work in the studio, painting. I have coffee mid-morning with my wife, then continue in the studio until lunchtime. After a short break I dedicate myself again to my tasks in the studio, also taking care of the photographic work. At night I dedicate myself to working with music and watching movies.

Project Credits:

Design: Ildefonso Aguilar

Landscape Design: Ildefonso Aguilar

Featured Artworks: Ildefonso Aguilar; José Abad; Dorotea Armas Curbelo; Russell Mills; Ian Walton

In the Canary Islands, an Artist Residency Blooms in an Abandoned Farmhouse

Before & After: This Canary Islands Home Was a Crumbling Ruin, but She Rebuilt It Piece by Piece