ABSTRACT

The balcony has been, and still is, an essential architectural element in the configuration of the residential buildings in the Mediterranean tradition, with a strong representativeness for users and architects. However, it is not apparently perceived an innovative concern of the same intensity that has characterized the technological research of the facade since the end of the 20th century. Over the last years in Spain, the constructive development of the architectural envelope has focused mainly on the evolution of the typology of the lightweight ventilated facade, which has consolidated new concepts based on a continuous skin that surrounds the whole building. This continuity seems incompatible with the current relation with balconies, as these are elements that stand out in cantilever drilling it, breaking this new protective and filter skin. In this way, many of the recent buildings facades are projected preferably with light-flat surfaces without bulges.