Can Ferriol is an 18th-century farmhouse located at the head of the Salut stream valley in Collserola. Comprised of a succession of 3 wings to which an additional volume was annexed later, it follows the conventions of Catalan farmhouses: it includes vineyard, agricultural, and livestock annexes, which are also characteristic of these constructions. The main building, oriented east-west, consists of a central access wing open to the two adjacent wings, and following this sequence of spaces, it establishes a connection with the rear volume formed by two wings. The farmhouse is situated on a terraced terrain, leaving the ground floor partially underground and open to a large courtyard facing east.

The functional proposal is based on the need to activate and reconcile the various uses that must converge at Can Ferriol farmhouse: residential use with cohabitation, productive use, and educational use. The different functions are grouped and distributed logically and efficiently, with common spaces located on the ground floor and all private areas on the first floor. This programmatic distribution respects the organizational structure of the original farmhouse, allowing the uses to adapt to the existing spaces.

The private residential spaces on the first floor also have independent access from the west facade. Each unit has at least two undifferentiated spaces that can serve as bedrooms or private rooms, thanks to the placement of a lightweight module in the center of each wing, which includes the bathroom, storage spaces, facilities, and access to the recovered attics. These service cores centralize the services, centralize the space, and distribute the new residences.

The rehabilitation project proposes the structural consolidation of the main body of the farmhouse and the recovery and enhancement of the various spaces and elements of heritage value, making it compatible with the adaptation of a traditional building classified as a Cultural Asset of Local Interest to current requirements for universal accessibility, habitability, and energy savings, while minimizing transformation operations. The successive interventions that the building has undergone over the course of its history are made visible, incorporating the exposed walls into the new domestic spaces, creating a palimpsest. This new intervention, conscious of adding another layer to the farmhouse’s history, takes a humble and respectful attitude, prioritizing work with materials already present in the original construction but incorporating updated techniques.

Due to working in a natural environment disconnected from supply networks, strategies are developed to ensure the energy self-sufficiency of the complex and the closing of the resource life cycle. All resources used are renewable and are based on the utilization of the raw materials available on the property, making use of the surplus from the activities conducted.