Casa Manuela Ofelia Viamontes

Casa Manuela Ofelia Viamontes

Frank Martinez

Siboney, Playa, Havana

1957

Martinez’s house for Manuela Ofelia Viamontes in the Reparto Biltmore is like a California case-study house situated in a large and deep rectangular lot.  The façade is an open carport covered by a flat concrete slab, with a delicate metal grille of continuous circles separating the porch from the first patio that one must traverse before arriving to the main part of the house. The main block consists of three wings surrounding a galleried court which faces south, with the main public rooms in the two front sections that connect the patios, and the private quarters angled slightly at the far back. Masonry walls of brick and stone, tile flooring, wooden louvers, and stained-glass windows complete the composition.