Playful Patchwork: El Garaje in Madrid by Nomos Arquitectos.

It’s always exciting to see what kind of magic architects create with a conversion project. While we’d normally see warehouses or factories receive fantastical transformations, Spanish practice Nomos Arquitectos has worked wonders inside a former mechanic garage instead. This Madrid home, aptly named El Garaje, is the garage conversion identified with a sweeping car ramp hugging the corner. One might assume the new interior belongs to someone who admires watching the mechanics of a car!

Measuring only 146 square metres, El Garaje connects with an apartment at the rear. Where the metal roller door once was now has a galvanized blue framed door filled with glass blocks, marking its colourful presence on the street front. The garage itself is remodelled into an entry/living area that can be divided into another rumpus by a sliding door in the centre. Additional two openings are punctured through the existing façade, allowing more light and effective ventilation within.

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Given the limited footprint, the home consists of rooms compartmentalised by the rhythm of the existing columns, with concrete blocks used as infills. Each column is concealed by a wall of thin white modules with timber framing and glass above for light to pass through.

The arranged concealment leads to a grid-like organisation. Shared spaces—the kitchen, dining and living—are placed towards the middle and front, while private areas for sleeping are sanctioned at the rear. With the lack of corridors present, openings between certain spaces are left doorless, although around the threshold, terracotta blocks are dotted around as markers for transitions of space.

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Detail axonometric of various materiality used.

Axonometric of El Garaje’s grid-like floor plan, designed as a collection of rooms.

Just as playful as the transitions, El Garaje’s interior pulls elements and accents from the external to the interior aesthetic. Influenced by the existing structures within, a patchwork of different materials from wooden floorboards to the classic red-brown ceramic tiles can be seen inside. Blue framework found on the doorframe is carried into the structure of the living space and used to serve as subtle signposts to the outdoors. Additional framing of blues can be seen in the balcony rail with rope woven into a graphic barrier. To match the timber framework above, furniture is tucked into the notches of the walls, minimising space obstruction. The entire ensemble speaks of a casual yet inviting cubby space for grown-ups.

Intuitive and practical at once, El Garaje makes for an extremely charming garage conversion. The layout also articulates how to effectively arrange a grid—to the point where it makes you wonder whether we ever need corridors at all.

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[Images courtesy of Nomos Arquitectos.]