About
Launched in 2010, Solo Houses is an architectural development project in a spectacular 200-hectare natural setting in Matarraña, Aragón. Its founders, Eva Albarrán and Christian Bourdais, invited 15 international studios at the avant-garde of the architectural field to design radical holiday homes embedded in nature.
Constituting the first collection of architecture in Europe, through Solo Houses a new generation of young architects was invited to design experimental houses that redefined architectural experience in relation to the landscape. These studios were Office KGDVS, Pezo von Ellrichshausen, Smiljan Radic, Sou Fujimoto, MOS, Barozzi Veiga, Tatiana Bilbao, Biloy Jain, TNA, Rintala Eggertsson, Johnston Marklee, Kuehn Malvezzi, Didier Fiúza Faustino, Go Hasegawa and Junya Ishigami.
The first two houses, designed by Pezo Von Ellrichshausen and Office KGDVS, were finalized in 2015 and 2017, respectively, and have since established Solo Houses as a stimulating destination for architecture, art and design enthusiasts. Acclaimed by critics and operated through a rental scheme, thousands of people have experienced a design-led stay Solo Houses, in which luxury is defined by a respectful approach to the surrounding nature.
Neighboring the majestic natural park of Los Puertos de Tortosa-Beceite, characterized by its low hills, pine trees and olive grooves, Solo Houses are self-sustaining in terms of energy consumption. Landscape design has been developed in collaboration with Bas Smets. Reinforcing their commitment to holistic land management, the neighboring organic winery Venta d’Aubert was incorporated into the project and operates on regenerative agricultural principles.
Founders Eva Albarrán and Christian Bourdais also run contemporary art gallery Albarrán Bourdais and the art production agency Eva Albarrán & Co. Gallery artists and other renowned international creators have been invited to create ambitious outdoor installations in the landscape in the three editions of Solo Summer Group Show, skillfully blending art, architecture and nature in Matarraña.