Zooco Estudio plants a two-storey bookshelf in the renovated 6House in Madrid, Spain

Madrid and Santander-based design office Zooco Estudio has finished the complete refurbishment of a semi-detached house in northwest Madrid, Spain. Called 6House, the pragmatic dwelling caters to a young couple with a child, its design and décor seeking to “achieve a feeling of openness and visual communication between the different areas”. The house is swathed in powder white paint that sits in soft contrast to the warm brown herringbone patterned flooring, a black spiral metal staircase and wooden cabinets, and has a large bookshelf that runs along its ground and first floor, breathing more personality into it.

The dwelling is named thus as the architects decided to integrate the client’s first name Sixto in it, resulting in 6House. Comprising four floors, the simple home has an open plan ground floor that hosts common areas such as living room, dining room and kitchen, opening out to a garden. The double height living area connects the space with the floors above, along with the continuous bookshelf. “As a unifying element, a support shelf is proposed that colonises all living and circulation spaces. In this way we integrate aesthetics and functionality as one single element,” shares Zooco Estudio. The shelves continue to the upper level with a rectangular volume along a deserted hallway. Mu27 E27 lights suspend over the dining area from the first floor ceiling, at various levels lending the double height space variety.

A binary choice of materials make up the renovation – oakwood floors and white finishes on the bookshelf, walls and ceilings. “This scheme is inverted in the kitchen area. On the bedroom floor, white slats mark the limit of circulation, hiding access doors to bedrooms and bathrooms,” the studio mentions.

Bridging aesthetics and functionality, the multifunctional bookshelf also acts as a constant backdrop to the interior design of 6House, that “adds neutral and bright nuances, and does not require many more elements to perceive a well-finished space,” according to the studio. The bookshelf also responds to the need of storage – one can keep belongings other than books here – music records, films, potted plants, playstations and so on. “Depending on the place, the shelf changes its function: as a wardrobe at the entrance, to store music in the TV area, and as a tableware display in the dining room,” observes Zooco Estudio.

A black spiraling staircase with steel steps wind between the first two floors, standing out from the rest of the residential design. The living room hosts Plas recessed luminaires from Faro, while the oak flooring in the kitchen is replaced by a white 10x10 ceramic from Pavigres. Light hardwood flooring in the bathrooms are also replaced by another 10x10 ceramic, model P21, by Pavigrés, covering its floors and walls. The white shelving continues upstairs, acting as a railing as well as a storage here. Vertically oriented slats, "hiding the access doors and bringing visual unity to this entire area”, separates the two bedroom and bathroom from the warm toned hallway. 

“The loft is reserved for the master bedroom, where the vertical wooden slat used on the first floor reappears, separating the bathroom and the living area and creating transparencies between both spaces. Generous skylights flood the loft bathroom with natural light,” says Zoocoo Estudio.

Project Details

Name: 6House
Location: Madrid, Spain
Architect, Lighting, Furniture: Zooco Estudio
Design team: Miguel Crespo Picot, Javier Guzmán Benito, Sixto Martín Martínez
Construction: Nimbo Proyectos S.L