Architect: Jørn Utzon.
Location: Majorca, Spain.
Year: 1972.
Photographs:  Torben Eskerod.

Can Lis is perched twenty metres above the Mediterranean Sea on a promontory. The structure of the home is made up of several pavilions that try to find the best orientation. Only a hall and a brick seat serve as the house’s entry, which is concealed by a rough wall from the walkway that borders the coast. After passing the threshold, a path outside links the courtyards where each volume’s entrance point is located. The several volumes follow a sequence based on the location of the sun, the trees, and the relationships between the many functions rather than line up facing the sea.

The home is a replica of the earliest inhabitants’ environment, who lived outdoors and used caves as a refuge. Because of this, the interiors provide a safe surface for the furniture to rest on and the deep openings emphasise the wall’s thickness. The exterior wood framing is concealed from view from inside the house.