A 15th-century Basque farmhouse restored by architect Ekaitz Uribe Rus and interior designer Patricia Arostegi

The intervention combines bioconstruction, material memory and a renewed way of inhabiting connected to the natural environment, transforming the former building into a family home, an independent apartment and several workspaces. 

The project, developed by Oreka Arkitektura and led by architect Ekaitz Uribe Rus together with interior designer Patricia Arostegi, approaches the complete rehabilitation of the building from a contemporary perspective deeply connected to Basque constructive tradition. Rather than a literal restoration, the intervention proposes a conscious reconstruction: a process that preserves the material memory of the farmhouse while adapting it to a new way of living.

The origin of the project is also a story of return. A family moved back from Canada — she Irish, he from Bizkaia, together with their three daughters — to establish their permanent home here. Accustomed for years to living in small spaces — barely a 40-square-metre studio — they imagined this house as a place for light, play and shared time.

The original building was in a very deteriorated state: fragmented rooms, pronounced level differences and spaces lacking natural light. Faced with this situation, the team chose to demolish and rebuild the farmhouse while maintaining its original volume and preserving the protected historic elements. The new structure is built using a lightweight timber frame system over a renewed foundation, a solution that combines traditional construction logic with contemporary standards of precision, energy efficiency and comfort.

This approach responds to the principles of bioconstruction that guide the work of Oreka Arkitektura. The selection of natural and breathable materials, attention to indoor air quality and passive thermal regulation place human wellbeing at the centre of the project. Beyond a technical label, bioconstruction here translates into an architecture that breathes with its surroundings and establishes a balanced relationship between landscape, dwelling and everyday life.

The construction was carried out by Egurpe, a local cooperative specialised in timber construction and the rehabilitation of historic farmhouses. Their collaboration was essential to execute the structural system with precision and coherence.

One of the most significant gestures of the project is the recovery of an original oak beam more than five metres long. The piece, belonging to the primitive structure of the farmhouse, was reintegrated into the new construction after a complex manual operation carried out by the building team. Its presence introduces a tangible continuity between past and present, becoming both a structural and symbolic element.

The spatial organisation of the house develops around a central feature: a large longitudinal gallery that crosses the building from east to west. This intermediate space — exterior yet protected — functions as the true heart of the house. Cool during the summer and sheltered from rain in winter, its generous scale allows it to become a meeting place, an informal dining area or a space for prolonged stays. A continuous bench rests against the original stone wall, accompanied by vegetation and ceramic pieces, while larch wood clads the gallery, introducing a contemporary counterpoint that dialogues with the historic stone.

From this gallery, access is provided both to the main dwelling and to auxiliary spaces — storage areas, workshop and a small support kitchen for outdoor gatherings — while the apartment intended for rental has its own independent access through the traditional aterpe at the front of the farmhouse. This organisation allows each programme to function autonomously without altering the unity of the whole.

The interior is organised according to orientation and light. Work and rest areas are placed to the north, receiving a calm and constant illumination with distant views towards the sea. The day areas open to the south and east, connecting with the oak woodland, fruit trees and outdoor play areas that surround the house within a plot of more than ten thousand square metres.

The interior design is conceived through a functional minimalism where warmth comes not from furniture but from materiality itself. Continuous Mortex flooring, natural oak carpentry, clay walls that regulate humidity passively and ecological paints create a serene and healthy atmosphere. Even in large and deliberately uncluttered spaces, the interior never feels cold: the texture of the materials and the presence of recovered original elements keep the memory of the place alive.

The kitchen, conceived as the centre of domestic life, is organised around an island with a natural stone countertop and custom-made oak veneer cabinetry. The design avoids superfluous elements and focuses on constructive precision and everyday use. In the living area, the absence of a conventional sofa leaves room for reading chairs oriented towards the landscape and a flexible area related to music, reflecting a more open and evolving way of inhabiting the space.

Art appears sparingly yet meaningfully. In the main space, a large-scale piece by Gabriela Sagarminaga made from natural fibres introduces texture and presence without disturbing the material calm of the interior. In the study, an engraving by Juan Escudero titled Torimbia establishes a direct dialogue with the seascape visible through the windows, so that the represented sea and the real one coexist within the same visual plane.

The intervention at Goikotorre does not aim to impose a new image upon the farmhouse, but rather to accompany its transformation with precision and respect. Here, architecture acts as a mediator between memory and present, between landscape and domestic life. More than reconstructing a historic building, the project also reconstructs a way of inhabiting the territory.

Project: Goikotorre.
Type of intervention: Comprehensive farmhouse rehabilitation
Location: Armintza (Bizkaia).
Completed: 2025.
Total area: 517 m².

Architecture: Oreka Bioarkitektura.
Lead architect: Ekaitz Uribe Rus.
Interior design and project management: Patricia Arostegi.
Construction: Egurpe Construcción en madera.
Photography: Erlantz Biderbost.
Styling: Inés Uribarren.
Art: Sagarminaga Atelier. Juan Escudero.

Ekaitz Uribe Rus

El arquitecto vasco Ekaitz Uribe Rus es el fundador y director de Oreka Bioarkitektura, un estudio especializado en arquitectura sostenible, rehabilitación y bioconstrucción que desarrolla principalmente su actividad en el País Vasco y en el norte de la península ibérica. Desde sus inicios, la práctica del estudio ha estado guiada por una profunda reflexión sobre la relación entre arquitectura, territorio y salud, explorando formas de construir que respondan de manera responsable tanto al entorno natural como a las formas contemporáneas de habitar.

El nombre del estudio —Oreka, que en euskera significa equilibrio— refleja el fundamento conceptual de su trabajo. Para Uribe Rus, la arquitectura surge de un delicado equilibrio entre el paisaje, la tradición constructiva, los recursos materiales, la eficiencia energética y el bienestar de las personas que habitan los espacios. Desde esta perspectiva, Oreka Bioarkitektura desarrolla proyectos que buscan integrar la arquitectura de manera natural en su contexto físico, cultural y social.

Con el paso de los años, Ekaitz Uribe Rus se ha consolidado como una de las voces destacadas de la bioconstrucción en el País Vasco. Esta disciplina entiende la arquitectura como un sistema vivo en el que los materiales, la energía y el ambiente interior interactúan con el paisaje que lo rodea. En su práctica profesional, la bioconstrucción no se plantea como una etiqueta técnica ni como una tendencia pasajera, sino como una forma de proyectar que sitúa en el centro la salud de las personas, la durabilidad de los edificios y la responsabilidad ambiental.
Ver biografía completa.

Patricia Arostegi

Patricia Arostegui es interiorista y gestora de proyectos especializada en la rehabilitación de caseríos y viviendas situadas en entornos rurales. Su trabajo se centra en acompañar procesos de transformación doméstica complejos, en los que arquitectura, interiorismo y vida cotidiana encontruentran un equilibrio sereno y duradero.

Antes de dedicarse al diseño de espacios, Arostegui desarrolló durante más de quince años su carrera profesional en la industria internacional de la moda y el lujo, trabajando entre Londres y Ámsterdam para compañías como Burberry. Esta experiencia le proporcionó una sólida formación en creatividad, organización y gestión de equipos en contextos exigentes, habilidades que posteriormente trasladó al ámbito de la arquitectura y la rehabilitación.  

Actualmente dirige proyectos de reforma y rehabilitación desde una visión integral que combina diseño interior, coordinación de obra y acompañamiento al cliente. Su práctica se desarrolla en estrecha colaboración con el estudio Oreka Bioarkitektura, liderado por el arquitecto Ekaitz Uribe Rus, con quien comparte una sensibilidad común hacia la bioconstrucción y el respeto por el paisaje. Esta colaboración permite abordar los proyectos desde una perspectiva coherente, en la que arquitectura e interiorismo se desarrollan como partes de un mismo proceso.  

Gran parte de su trabajo se orienta a personas y familias que deciden trasladarse del entorno urbano al rural, ayudándoles a redefinir su manera de habitar y su relación con el territorio. En este contexto, Arostegui apuesta por un acompañamiento cercano y profundamente personalizado, trabajando simultáneamente en un número limitado de proyectos para garantizar una atención constante.  

Su metodología se apoya en equipos reducidos de profesionales, en una gestión transparente de los procesos y en un control económico riguroso de las obras. Más allá del resultado formal, su objetivo es convertir lo que a menudo se percibe como una experiencia compleja o estresante en un proceso claro, compartido y sereno, en el que los clientes se sientan implicados y acompañados en cada decisión.  

Project by Ekaitz Uribe Rus. Oreka Bioarkitektura