A Fiery-Red Home Sizzles With Simplistic, Modern Design

This simple red house in Portugal appears as a signpost within its labyrinth-like, forested site.

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Acclaimed for his organic Eco and Snake Houses in Portugal’s Pedras Salgadas Park, Lisbon–based architect Luis Rebelo de Andrade has added another recent project to his remarkable portfolio. Known as House 3000, this striking, fire-engine red home is unmissable amidst the dark green trees in its woodland site in Herdade da Considerad.

House 3000 is set within a maze-like sea of trees.

Located on over 1,000 acres of arid land dotted with cork oaks and umbrella pines, the stunning house has been inspired by the unity of the landscape, where everything looks similar from all directions.

The bright red color and clean, sharp outlines of the house acts as a visual marker.

On a preliminary visit to the site, Rebelo de Andrade observed that the natural landscape was unified in all directions. This experience of maze-like uniformity, and the lack of natural landmarks, led to him to the idea of a house that doubles up as a visual marker—a signpost within nature.

Because the area lacks distinctive natural features, House 3000 has quickly become a landmark that helps orientate visitors to the site.

"It is easier to lose your car at Herdade da Considerada than in a supermarket car park," explains the architect.

The house has a high-pitched, gabled roof.

The 4,356-square-foot residence was conceived as a simple child’s drawing of a gable-roofed house with clean, sharp outlines, and simple doors and windows. Rebelo de Andrade compares the dwelling's form to the homes of the first settlers in the American West.

Early American prairie homes inspired the form of the house.

"In the absence of geodesic markers—which nature did not offer Herdade da Considerada—it is architecture that takes the place of the reference points that from time immemorial has guided man, complementing the landscape with a building that is overwhelmingly visible," Rebelo de Andrade continues.

A simple, neutral color scheme gives the interiors its warm, practical character.

In contrast to its visually impacting, bright-red exterior, the home's interiors are minimally furnished with plenty of warm wood, as well as soft-muted tones that are accented with splashes of more intense color, and earthy, woven textiles.