Bathyard Home in Madrid by Husos Architects

Most homes are made up of the same elements – kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living room and maybe even a study. Well today Yellowtracers, thanks to a sassy Spaniard with a penchant for plants, we introduce you to a whole new type of domestic interior – the ‘Bathyard’. Combining the homeowner’s love for plants and bathing, Husos Architects came up with the ’Bathyard’ concept; a flexible space for gardening and bathing. The space includes a small greenhouse, equipped with a drip irrigation system and all types of plants, along with a freestanding claw-toothed bathtub that is deliciously deep and enticing.

The character of the ‘Bathyard’ room can be altered in many different ways. For social use, the ‘Omega Folding Bench’ can be deployed (much like a built-in ironing board), making a seat for guests in this space should the bather feel sociable. On the other hand, sliding partitions made with opaque ribbed plastic can be closed for a sense of privacy for solitary bathing experiences. Husos also designed the ‘Sun Auxiliary Table’ for the space, a moveable table that can accommodate bathing products, a few cups of tea, gardening utensils or even more plants.

The perfection of the ‘Bathyard’ room aside, there’s more to this home than its bathing area. Husos were engaged to reconfigure the entire apartment, which is located in Madrid, with the brief to improve ventilation, climate control, add more natural light and create a flexible relationship between private and shared spaces. In response, several walls were knocked down to entirely reorient the space south, with new wooden-framed moveable partitions added to create new zones. Most materials in the home have a degree of transparency – some have semi-reflective screens, which are strategically positioned with surprising effects such as the gold shimmery privacy curtain that reflects sunlight towards the master bedroom in the morning.

Overall, the space is defined by a kitsch playfulness thanks to its Memphis geometry and ‘80s palette of canary yellow, pastel pink, sky blue and teal. These colours are used effectively to delineate space, block-painted on the floor, walls and ceilings. Another witty detail is the peephole ‘Occulus’ interior window, which features a moveable screen to control light, airflow and of course, plant visibility. It’s these quirky details and proportions that make this apartment sing; a home that doesn’t take itself too seriously and appeals to us in the most endearingly joyful way.