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This cantilevered concrete house, known as the Hemeroscopium House, is located in Spain and was designed by Anton Garcia-Abril and apparently only took a week to build. The use of concrete and glass as materials here is striking; the mammoth scale is akin to public structures like museums and libraries, yet it is employed very successfully in this residential space. The obvious piece de resistance, however, is the trough-like cantilevered pool that impales the house.

The exterior reminds me of the interior design theory that if you wish to make a small space seem bigger, decorate sparsely using big objects not small objects -- big and simple not small and scattered. The Hemeroscopium House takes this theory and applies it to the exterior, which accounts for the colossal feel. While intimidating and acutely frightening, the scale seems to empower the resident of this space vis-a-vis a feeling of "surviving" the ton of concrete over your head that seems to be missing the necessary support. The joint system concentrates the weight mostly at the "V" shaped support at the head of the large pool.

This "V" metal joint is a brown colour that contrasts nicely with the dirty beige of the concrete. Texture is remarkable, as each of the three main colours holds their own texture: beige concrete as scuffed, soft and sculpted; brown metal beams as a hard sharp matte; the gray-blue glass as reflective and shiny. The result is a balanced interplay of clean and defined forms, which makes me think that the Hemeroscopium House takes on a very human quality despite its gargantuan and industrial sum appearance.

The concrete is sculpted and soft like a person's skin while the metal beams and joints feel like the skeletal system holding the body together. And most importantly, the glass is reflective and clear like the eyes, which themselves are a window to the soul. Something is missing in this list, though: the mind.

The interior of the house is not visible from these photos, but from through the glass it seems as though it is an open, vast space with long draped fabric curtains that can be closed at will. It is as if this house, despite its blatant domineering and forceful feel, still longs for privacy. And isn't that really the point of a house? That is, enclosure, security, and a keep-safe for one's possessions.