Casa Mínima | Mínima

Casa Mínima is the rehabilitation of a traditional Pasiego cabin in the rural landscape of Cantabria, northern Spain. The project transforms a deteriorated agricultural structure into a contemporary dwelling while preserving the spatial logic and material presence of this vernacular building type.

Pasiego cabins are stone constructions associated with the semi-transhumant pastoral culture of the region. Built with thick masonry walls and timber roofs, they traditionally combined livestock spaces on the ground floor with seasonal living quarters above, accessed directly from the exterior by a stone staircase. The intervention preserves this typological structure while adapting the building to contemporary domestic use.

The exterior volume and stone masonry remain largely unchanged. The walls — up to 80 cm thick and historically assembled with earth rather than mortar — retain their characteristic dry-stone appearance within the landscape. Rather than altering the façade, the environmental upgrade is concentrated inside the building through a high-performance internal envelope that provides insulation and airtightness while preserving the historic structure.

This strategy allows the building to achieve the EnerPHit standard — the Passivhaus certification for high-performance retrofits. Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery and an integrated heat-pump system ensure stable indoor temperatures and constant air quality with minimal energy demand.

Originally the ground floor functioned as a stable: a dark, continuous space defined by massive stone walls and minimal openings. The rehabilitation transforms this level into the main domestic area, organizing kitchen, dining and living spaces within a single open interior. New openings carved into the thick masonry introduce natural light and establish a direct relationship with the surrounding valley. Adjacent to the house, a former manure enclosure has been cleared and redefined as a stone patio paved with the large slabs that once formed the stable floor, preserving the material memory of the building while extending the domestic space outward.

Casa Mínima also operates as a holiday rental for up to six guests, making it possible to directly experience the spatial, environmental and material qualities of the project. The house proposes a way of living where comfort, silence and a close relationship with the landscape are intrinsic to the architecture itself.

[ES]

Casa Mínima es la rehabilitación de una antigua cabaña pasiega en el paisaje rural de Cantabria. El proyecto transforma una construcción agrícola en estado de abandono en una vivienda contemporánea, preservando la lógica espacial y la presencia material de esta tipología vernácula.

La intervención mantiene la volumétrica original, los muros de piedra de hasta 80 cm de espesor, la cubierta inclinada y la escalera de piedra exterior característica de esta tipología, concentrando la transformación en el interior. La estrategia energética se basa en una envolvente interior de altas prestaciones que permite alcanzar la certificación EnerPHit —el estándar Passivhaus para rehabilitación— sin intervenir en la fachada histórica.

La planta baja, originalmente cuadra, se transforma en el ámbito principal de la vivienda con cocina, comedor y salón en secuencia abierta. Nuevas aperturas en la gruesa mampostería incorporan luz natural y establecen una relación directa con el valle. El antiguo recinto exterior se redefine como patio pavimentado con las losas originales de la cuadra, incorporando la memoria material del edificio a su nueva condición doméstica.

Casa Mínima funciona también como alojamiento turístico para hasta seis personas, permitiendo experimentar directamente las cualidades espaciales, ambientales y materiales del proyecto

Photography: Biderbost Photo / Estudio Mínima