Casa Rosto do Cão by M-Arquitectos is fronted by four white blocks
Four small blocks fan out from the facade of this white concrete house on a Portuguese island by local studio M-
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_SQ01.jpg)
M-Arquitectos designed the 240-square-metre house for a rural plot outside the city of Ponta Delgada in São Miguel Island – a volcanic isle off the west coast of Portugal.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
The utility rooms of the irregularly shaped Casa Rosto do Cão were arranged across the road-facing side of the property, while living and sleeping areas have been positioned so that they look out onto open farmland at the rear.
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The client requested a simple and cozy but "unfamiliar" form for the single-storey house.
The architects responded by adding cutaways in the facade, portioning up the volume into chunks that house a second bedroom, a kitchen-diner, a car-port and a utility room.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_5.jpg)
Sloping roofs rise to meet the flat L-shaped plane that stretches across the living room and master bedroom, providing a non-standard gabled profile.
"The building took this form as a result of rethinking the traditional Azorian house, known for its gable roofs," said studio architect Rodrigo Sequeira Dias Filipe.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_1.jpg)
"The volume naturally settles over the smooth terrain, respecting the existing topography in order to gain views of the sunset and the vegetation with the least impact on the surroundings."
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_8.jpg)
High-level lighting accentuates the gabled roof structure inside the house. Windows on the sides of the splayed blocks bring in light from the south, while floor-to-ceiling glazing wraps around the rear of the building.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_15.jpg)
At the back of the property, a landscape window cut low in the wall of the master bedroom aligns with the bed to offer reclining views of the coastline and mountainous backdrop.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_10.jpg)
The white-painted spaces are dressed in a combination of contrasting dark wood and white marble.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_9.jpg)
The living space, which features the glazed facade made up of small black-framed panes, is centred around a wood-burning stove with a black flue.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_16.jpg)
A slim wooden sun deck follows the outline of the room and is shaded under the overhang of the roof. The triangular section of roof is supported at its tip by a single black column.
![Casa Rosto do Cão M-Arquitectos](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Casa-Rosto-do-Cao-M-Arquitectos_dezeen_468_12.jpg)
Photography is by Paulo Goulart.
Project credits:
Architects: M-Arquitectos – Monteiro, Resendes & Sousa Arquitectos
Partners: Fernando Monteiro, Marco Resendes, Miguel Sousa
Architect in charge: Fernando Monteiro
Collaborators: Marco Resendes, Miguel Sousa, Diana Policarpo, Pedro Furtado, Maria Melo Bento
Stability and infrastructure/Engineers: José Brum, Ricardo Pacheco
Construction: Multipacto
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