Villa “La scala” en Portese del Garda

This is an «artist's house», and is built on the hill slopes overlooking Lake of Garda. The project consists of a number of buildings, which adapt themselves closely to the contour and accidents of the ground, and blend in gentle contrast with it. The villa itself is at the highest level, and enjoys a magnificent view over the impressive landscape around it. It consists of two main living spaces: one of them is formed by the guest room, the bathroom and kitchen, and is well differentiated from the second, which is made up of a living room, a dining room, and the main bedroom. Lower than the living quarters and fully separated from them, is the studio and workshop. This is an extensive enclosure, with very ample, movable, glazed surfaces. It can be extended so as to include the porch and adjoining terraces. There is a secondary building, where the watchman and the servants of the villa live. It is made with local stone, and is covered with tiles. This strong, tough looking building was made thus to better withstand the violence of the local storms, which often whip up considerable waves on the surface of the famous lake. The surrounding land has been left in its original aspect; namely, tilled soil, low bushes and olive groves. The notable emphasis which the architect has sought in the horizontal lines of the buildings harmonizes cleverly with the water surface, and the plastic power of the concrete structure adds to the sense of solidity provided by the mountainside.Este complejo residencial, dedicado a «Casa de un artista», se asienta sobra un terreno de forma irregular —en declive hacia el lago del Garda—. En su zona más elevada se alza la «villa», desde la que se divisa el lago y el excepcional paisaje circundante; en la distribución interior podemos observar que, exceptuando la habitación de huéspedes, baño y cocina—que aparecen explícitamente aisladas—, el resto de las piezas constituye un espacio único, que comprende: la sala de estar, comedor y dormitorio principal. El estudio-taller, que está emplazado debajo de la villa —pero independiente de la misma—, abarca un extenso recinto dotado de grandes ventanales móviles y susceptible de ser ampliado con el pórtico y terrazas anejas. La vivienda del guarda, que sirve además como residencia para el personal de servicio de la villa, está construida a base de piedra de la localidad, y va cubierta con teja. La fuerte oscilación del nivel del agua —sobre todo cuando el lago está lleno—y la violencia de las borrascas, decidieron este tipo de construcción. El paisaje se ha conservado con su característica primitiva de uso agrícola, de olivar y matorral. En cuanto a la composición arquitectónica del cuerpo residencial, destaca por el acentuado dominio de Ia horizontal: constituyendo él conjunto una acertada experiencia sobre los valores plásticos del hormigón