Portuguese studio Bak Gordon Arquitectos has completed a house alongside a long swimming pool in the Alentejo region of Portugal.

The pool, which runs along the south wall of the house, was the starting point for Bak Gordon Arquitectos design of Casa Azul.

“Built in the vast territory of Alentejo, the house emerges from the figure of an extensive water tank attached to a wall, facing south,” Bak Gordon Arquitectos told Dezeen.

“It is as if it was a resonance box of the entire landscape.”

The water tank was designed to reflect the surrounding rural landscape which is formed of grassy and sandy terrain.

“We like to think about how we relate to the landscape,” added the studio.

“This relationship should not be too open, especially in the Alentejo. On the contrary [we like], the idea of framing as if it were a living painting.”

The building’s geometric arrangement and the wide windows and openings were designed to bathe the residents in light as well as providing multiple places to admire the natural landscape outside.

“The Alentejo landscape is very horizontal and the sunlight is very geometric,” said the studio.

“The relationship between light and shadow becomes a fundamental element.”