TECNO HOMES

Great-Grandparents' House - Jesus Davila Architects: Architecture that Honors Memory and Challenges the Budget

2026-05-12T15:25:59.050-07:00

True architecture is not measured by its scale or cost, but by its ability to respond sensitively to human needs and context, weaving stories into every wall.

The Great-Grandparents' House, a work by Jesus Davila Architects in Aguascalientes, Mexico, is a moving example of architecture with purpose that transcends mere functionality to become an emotional refuge.

Designed for an elderly couple (between 75 and 80 years old), this house of just 73 m² not only meets a limited budget (approximately USD 45,000), but also addresses a challenging urban context with exceptional sensitivity. It is a masterclass in how creativity and empathy can transform constraints into opportunities for single-family home design.

The main architectural challenge was integrating the house into a small plot of land and a "difficult and challenging context." Jesus Davila Architects' solution was an introspective architectural strategy: the house closes itself off from the outside world with high, solid walls, protecting its inhabitants from the immediate surroundings. However, this enclosure does not imply isolation. The house opens strategically onto a small, pre-existing garden, allowing nature to be an integral part of daily life. This duality between protection and openness is key to understanding the philosophy behind this architecture in Aguascalientes.

A key client requirement was that the house have only one finished floor level, ensuring accessibility and comfort for the elderly residents. This seemingly simple design decision has profound implications for the spatial distribution and flow of movement, creating a safe and easy-to-navigate home. The building's height was carefully considered to maximize the impact of the morning sun, allowing natural light to flood the spaces through two large windows. This manipulation of light not only illuminates but also warms the interior, contributing to a homey and energy-efficient atmosphere.

The aesthetic of the Great-Grandparents' House eschews ostentation, seeking an inherent beauty in its constructive and functional honesty. It doesn't aim to "attract the attention of those unfamiliar with the space," but rather focuses on the experience of its inhabitants. The house is a testament to the fact that architecture for older adults can be dignified, beautiful, and profoundly meaningful, without the need for extravagant luxuries. It is a functional, minimal dwelling that demonstrates how respect for the user and the context can shape an architectural work of great value.

Conclusion and Lesson for New Architects:

The Great-Grandparents' House offers an invaluable lesson for new architects: the most impactful architecture often arises from the greatest constraints. The key lesson is that a tight budget and a challenging context are not insurmountable obstacles, but rather catalysts for innovation and creativity. Jesus Davila Architects demonstrates how user-centered design, sensitive integration with the environment, and intelligent use of natural light can create a home that is functional, emotionally resonant, and deeply respectful of the history and needs of its inhabitants. It is a reminder that architecture, at its core, is a service that enhances life.

Project Description:

The client for this house asked me to design it to be warm, homey, functional, and with a single finished floor level for the entire house. It had to be designed within a limited budget, a challenging context, and a small lot. With a budget of approximately US$45,000, the design included a living room, a kitchen, a dining room, a full bathroom, a powder room, a walk-in closet, and a master bedroom within 73 square meters.

The bedroom is divided by two walls for privacy, and the walk-in closet and full bathroom are attached to it. The kitchen is enclosed separately by three low walls. The living room, dining room, and powder room are located within the main public area.

My proposal was to open the house as much as possible to the sun, air, and a small existing garden. The height is determined by the impact of the morning sun, which streams in through the two large windows, illuminating the entire space regardless of the wall color. Waking up and eating become a constant interaction with the exterior, which is entirely shaped by nature (the garden).

This house was designed for an elderly couple between 75 and 80 years old. All of the above was enclosed within very closed walls to respond to the challenging and somewhat unfavorable context, opening up where necessary. Its aesthetic avoids trying to attract the attention of anyone unfamiliar with the space. Under these conditions and concepts, I built the great-grandparents' house.

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Project: Great-Grandparents' House
Architect: Jesus Davila Architects
Location: Altavista, Mexico
Year of Construction: 2012
Built Area: 73 m²
Estimated Budget: $45,000 USD
Photography: Eddy Yuvoniel

Ballymorris House - Donal Colfer Architects: A Dialogue between the Ancient and the Contemporary

2026-02-17T08:23:00.000-08:00

Architecture is not just about building, but about engaging with the past and the environment, transforming what exists into something new and relevant.

The Ballymorris House, designed by Donal Colfer Architects, represents a masterful study in integrating historic architecture with contemporary sensibilities. Located in Wexford, Ireland, this residence is the result of the renovation and extension of a 19th-century farmhouse, a project that challenged the architects to preserve the original character while injecting new functional and aesthetic life.

The architectural approach focused on creating visual and spatial connectivity between the original structure and the new additions. Demolition of the rear of the farmhouse made way for a modern, double-height extension, conceived as a "box" opening onto a central courtyard. This courtyard becomes the heart of the complex, visually uniting the main house with the outbuildings and fostering a fluid interaction between the spaces.

One of the most striking elements is the strategic use of natural light. A longitudinal skylight spans the width of the original house, serving as a connector between the old and the new. This intervention not only floods the interiors with light but also creates a narrow bridge linking the original bedrooms to the master suite, offering serene views of the courtyard and the surrounding landscape. Transparency is achieved through large floor-to-ceiling windows that dissolve the boundaries between inside and outside, inviting the rural landscape to become part of the living experience.

The choice of materials reinforces this dialogue. The solidity of the local conglomerate stone of the existing walls is complemented by a palette of American oak, lime plaster, and limestone in the new sections. This combination not only respects the heritage of the site but also introduces a warmth and texture that enrich the spatial experience.

Conclusion and Lessons for New Architects:

The Ballymorris House teaches us that intervention architecture is not about imposing, but about listening. New architects must understand that respect for the existing structure and environment does not limit creativity, but rather enhances it. The key lies in identifying the intrinsic values of the site and the structure, and then, through sensitive and strategic design, weaving a narrative that connects the past with the present, creating spaces that are both innovative and deeply rooted in their context.

Project Description:

A medium-sized 19th-century farmhouse and its outbuildings are extended and renovated for a young family.

The layout of the house has also been opened up and reconfigured to reinforce its connection with the courtyard, whose character is maintained by limiting the changes made to the exterior of the outbuildings, only extending and opening up some existing stone walls.

A system of sightlines is created within the building complex to allow connections between the main living area of the house and the new living spaces in the outbuildings.

A simple palette of oak, plaster, and limestone is used to complement the existing walls of local conglomerate stone.

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Architects: Donal Colfer Architects
Location: Wexford, Ireland
Team: Donal Colfer, Conor McHugh, Kevin Kelly
Project Year: 2009
Project Area: 380.0 m2
Photographs: Alice Clancy

Algarrobos House - José María Sáez + Daniel Moreno Flores

2026-01-01T12:50:00.000-08:00

Eight identical metal pieces, each 18 meters long and positioned along the x and z axes, define the living space while simultaneously opening it up by projecting in different directions. They are abstract beams that, by their orientation, seek a relationship with their surroundings.

This structure fulfills a necessary intermediation between the scale of the landscape and that of the person: in its long dimension they produce the large overhangs towards the ravine or the masts that mark the presence of the house, in the dimension of edge two beams are a habitable height.

Supported by the metal structure, another wooden subsystem completes the definition of the spaces, softening its enclosure-like nature through repetition and simplification. A sequence of identical profiles allows for the suspension or support of the mezzanines and ceilings.

Glass surfaces protect the wood and complete the enclosure of the spaces. The glass, often movable, establishes a reinforcing relationship with the surroundings, whether through transparency or reflection. The use of water features on metal roofs further emphasizes the strategy of reflecting the environment, partially diminishing the presence of the architecture.

The user's relationship with the site is the generating element of the project; the aim is to intensify their relationship with reality (place, material, activity) based on a basic formal and constructive system that also makes the mental origin of our decisions intelligible.

System

Environment, function, and user are the starting points that generate design directions. Form and construction are the points of arrival at a concrete solution. When formalization and materialization occur as intimately related operations, we obtain a unique solution that is both coherent and viable, abstract and real.

More than an object, we generate a system established by defining a limited number of elements and a set of rules governing their relationships. By refining the elements through simplification and systematization, and simultaneously enriching their capacity to generate relationships, we seek a universal architecture that humanizes and intensifies our connection with the initial reality.

Architects: Daniel Moreno Flores, Jose María Saez
Area: 833 m²
Year: 2011
Photographs: Raed Gindeya Muñoz

Basket Apartments in Paris / OFIS Architects

2025-10-14T16:22:00.000-07:00

The project is located on a long and very narrow site, on the edge of Parc La Vilette in Paris’s 19th district, within an urban development done by Reichen & Robert architects. On the northeast, new Paris tram route is passing along the site. The site is bordering with tram garage on the southwest, above which is a football field. The first 3 floors of the housing will inevitably share the wall with the tram garage.

Site plan conditions

The parcel has a very particular configuration; 11m in width and extending approximately 200m north-south. This foreshadows the importance of processing the eastern facade overlooking the extension of the street Des Petits Ponts which hosts the tram and both cyclist and pedestrian walkways.

New Plot

The long volume of the building is divided into two parts connected with a narrow bridge. Between two volumes there is a garden. The building has 11 floors: a technical space in the basement, shared programs in the ground floor, and student apartments in the upper nine floors. The layout is very rational and modular.

Program - student dormitory with 192 studios

The major objective of the project was to provide students with a healthy environment for studying, learning and meeting. Along the length of the football field is an open corridor and gallery that overlooks the field and creates a view to the city and the Eiffel tower. This gallery is an access to the apartments providing students with a common place. All the studios are the same size and contain the same elements to optimize design and construction: an entrance, bathroom, wardrobe, kitchenette, working space and a bed. Each apartment has a balcony overlooking the street.

Design concept

Narrow length of the plot with 10 floors gives to site a significant presence. Each volume contains two different faces according to the function and program: The elevation towards the street des Petits Ponts contains studio balconies-baskets of different sizes made from HPL timber stripes. They are randomly oriented to diversify the views and rhythm of the façade.

Shifted baskets create a dynamic surface while also breaking down the scale and proportion of the building. The elevation towards the football field has an open passage walkway with studio entrances enclosed with a 3D metal mesh. Both volumes are connected on the first floor with a narrow bridge which is also an open common space for students.

Sustainable efficiency

The building is energy efficient to accommodate the desires of Paris' sustainable development efforts. The Plan Climates goal is that future housing will consume 50KW-h.m.² or less. The objectives of energy performance and the construction timetable were met by focusing on a simple, well insulated and ventilated object that functions at its best year round. Accommodations are cross ventilating and allow abundant day lighting throughout the apartment.

External corridors and glass staircases also promote natural lighting in the common circulation, affording energy while also creating comfortable and well lit social spaces. The building is insulated from the outside with an insulation thickness of 20 cm. Thermal bridge breakers are used on corridor floors and balconies to avoid thermal bridges. Ventilation is controlled by double flow mechanical ventilation, providing clean air in every apartment with an optimum temperature throughout the year. The incoming air also reuses heat from the exhaust air. The roof is covered with 300m² of photovoltaic panels to generate electricity. Rainwater is harvested on site in a basin pool used for watering outdoor green spaces.

Architects: OFIS architects
Location: Paris, France
Design Team: Rok Oman, Spela Videcnik, Robert Janez, Janez Martincic, Andrej Gregoric, Janja del Linz, Louis Geiswiller, Hyunggyu Kim, Chaewan Shin, Jaehyun Kim, Erin Durno, Javier Carrera, Giuliana Fimmano, Jolien Maes, Lin Wei
Project Area: 931.0 m2
Land Area: 1,981 m2
Client: Regie Immobiliere de la Ville de Paris
Budget: €17.5 million
Project Year: 2012
Photographs: Tomaz Gregoric

Casa el Polo - Juan Cristóbal Valenzuela Leighton y Eduardo Rivera Barros Arquitectos

2025-08-19T11:30:00.000-07:00

Esta casa está dentro de un condominio suburbano en la zona norte de Santiago, donde los sitios son de casi ½ hectárea de superficie para cada vivienda unifamiliar, por lo que el espacio público tiende a ser inerte y se reduce a calles amplias destinadas exclusivamente a desplazarse en auto.

El terreno donde se emplaza la casa es extenso y plano, con vistas despejadas en todas direcciones, incluido los cerros que rodean el sector, y se percibe aún más amplio porque lo antecede una explanada de forma triangular que enfrenta la intersección de 2 calles.

Ante esta perspectiva, la propuesta consiste en habitar la extensión mediante la construcción de un límite, de modo que la casa se constituye en el muro de fondo de la explanada y que al prescindir de cierres exteriores permite borrar la división entre el espacio público y el privado.

Con esta idea el proyecto se estructura a partir de un muro de hormigón armado a la vista dispuesto a todo lo ancho del sitio, en sentido oriente – poniente, sobre el cual se sitúa un cuerpo blanco de 2 niveles.

Esta disposición lineal determina una casa de 2 caras: la fachada norte con todos los recintos orientados al sol con vista al jardín privado y la fachada sur que enfrenta el espacio público con muros desplegados que permiten entrever lo que sucede al interior de la casa y viceversa.

Arquitectos: Juan Cristóbal Valenzuela Leighton y Eduardo Rivera Barros Arquitectos
Ubicación: Colina, Chile
Año Proyecto: 2011
Área Proyecto: 374.0 m2
Ing. Estructural: Ingevsa / Eduardo Valenzuela Sabbagh
Construcción: Eduardo Mackay Jarpa EIRL
Fotografías: J. Cristóbal Valenzuela L

House in Hanareyama - Kidosaki Architects Studio

2025-08-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

The surrounding of the site located at the foot of the Hanareyama, overlooking the landmark of the region in north orientation, shows the spread of the trees grown up in years.

We tried to produce an architecture with the dignified presence, which has both free spirited and subtle quality- by placing a one-storied house maintaining a low building profile that dynamically extends in east and west orientation with sharply extending eaves on the building for exaggerating the horizontality against the surrounding landscape with bold yet delicate vertical quality.

The dining and living areas as the main spaces of the house face to the south side garden filled with daylight, and on the north side with the seasonal views of Hanareyama reflecting the sun light, bringing in those surrounding environment and sceneries into those spaces and linking them together.

While the east and west sides of the building are closed, the full frontage openings on the north and south sides are intended to produce a comfortable space where the variety of the natural conditions throughout the changing seasons can be always felt from inside of the house.

Furthermore, a terrace is provided on the south side as the extension of the living and dining rooms. A self standing wall equipped with a fireplace is provided along with the terrace extending out deep into the garden. this wall allows to feel the garden as a unified space with the house, providing a place to discover the nature by stimulating all senses.

It is a device that allows to relax the body and mind, increases the sensitivity toward surrounding environment, and to enjoy the out-of-daily life within the daily living environment. I hope the presence of the building is engraved onto the memory of the land, along with daily life of the client colored by the magnificent sceneries of the nature in each seasons, site and the surrounding conditions.

Architects: Kidosaki Architects Studio
Location: Nagareyama, Chiba, Japan
Design Team: Hirotaka Kidosaki, Satoshi Itasaka
Project Year: 2009
Project Area: 375.39 m2
Structures: Takashi Manda
Contractor: Niitsu Gumi Area
Site: 3387.23 sqm
Photographs: Kidosaki Architects Studio

House in Torreira - Nuno Silva

2025-08-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

Site Characterization

The building sit is characterized by its rectangular shape and with east-west orientation, flat until half of the land and there after acquiring a steep slope. The house is inserted in a parcel which determines the rules and the implementation to be adopted.

Proposal

Due to land conditionings and due to constructions rules, the first idea was to occupy the area for construction till their limits. Volumetrically, the house detains two levels in the main volume and one level in the garage zone. The regulation for this parcel imposes the obligation for a house with a ridge roof and the use of ceramic tiles.

The elevation openings were studied in order to establish a direct connection to the interior functions, resulting in “mismatched” openings.

Utilization Program

The house detains two levels with a T3+1 typology.
The interior spacial distribution is characterized by the radical separation of the function by floors. The social /service parts of the house is located in the ground floor and is composed by the entrance hall, toilets, kitchen, living and dinning room, garage, office and the vertical access to the 1st floor (stairs).

The first floor, the private part of the house, is composed by the rooms (three) and the respective toilets.

In the ground-floor, in the back of the house it was build a platform for the connection of the interior and the exterior, ensuring the access to the end of the lot.

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Architects: Nuno Silva
Location: Torreira, Murtosa
Project Year: 2011
Project Area: 280.0 sqm
Civil Engineering: Rogério Gouveia Bessa
Hydraulic Engineering: Patricia Rodrigues
Electrical Engineering: José Martins Amorim
Thermal And Gas Engineering: Romana Rodrigues
Contractor: Construtora de Loureiro
Client: João Lopes Nunes
Photographs: Ivo Tavares Studio

Eriso House - Agraz Arquitectos

2025-08-04T13:01:00.000-07:00

Named as a play on words based on the names of its inhabitants, the Eriso House is distinct from others due to a couple of circumstances. Initially, it was one of the first to be built in Agraz Arquitectos's second decade, clearly reflecting several of the firm's constants, including the eternal search for elements to enrich its architectural language. However, its greatest peculiarity is that it is almost completely surrounded by gardens and a street at 180 degrees, having only one boundary. In addition, the ground slopes downward, leaving the street below, thus favoring the rooms with their views of these gardens and making the passage of cars almost imperceptible.

Thus, attention is drawn to the facade, which overlooks a small lake embedded in a public garden within the subdivision, ensuring a peaceful view of the grounds. Therefore, the project contemplates directing the house's most relevant spaces toward that perspective, which, in terms of image and orientation, provides the best combination, and this is what defines the overall layout. Once again, vehicles are located in the basement, maintaining this philosophy of placing people above the automobile, and access via a ramp to the parking lot is at the level of the equipment and services.

Developed mostly on a single floor—a feature that also sets it apart from the firm's other projects—the living room, dining room, terrace, master bedroom, and even the kitchen overlook this landscaped area with its artificial lake.

A small hallway serves as a central core, protecting privacy and serving as a boundary between public and private spaces. In the children's bedrooms, privacy is enhanced by the use of an anodized aluminum latticework, the work of artist Adrián Guerrero.

Meanwhile, the upper floor, reserved for two rooms, includes a study and a living room overlooking the same magnificent location mentioned above, which utilizes the ceiling of the dining room as a terrace. Also located there is a separate guest bedroom, separate from family life and offering panoramic views, its own laundry area.

The result is a piece unlike anything previously created thanks to the unique conditions of dispensing with boundaries and allowing the house to be built on a single floor.

For the garden design, which is so central in this case, Agraz Arquitectos invited Álvaro Morales to develop the landscape architecture, achieving remarkable results in the green areas and enriching the project as a whole.

Architects: Agraz Arquitectos
Area: 641 m²
Year: 2011
Photographs: Mito Covarrubias

CyD House - V.Oid + Diacrítica

2025-07-31T18:24:00.000-07:00

The project is a 470 m² summer home in the Los Cóndores Country Club of Chaclacayo, north of Lima. The site measures approximately 2500 m², presenting an irregular geometry and steep inclines, the most dramatic of which is a land depression rife with obsolete cisterns.

To best reintegrate the unoccupied area of the lot –its main asset– we pushed the house up against the adjacent hill's steepest front in order consolidate the spaces before and below its line of vision. Using a very strong symmetry, the house’s shape consists of two V-shaped wings that adjust to the terrain’s perimeter, maximizing the flat garden area in the front.

The entrance is at the far left. A lengthwise, partly-covered gallery runs along the house, integrating all its social areas, namely, the vestibule, the living and dining rooms, the kitchen and the terrace

The second story holds the private areas: on the left wing are the children’s quarters; on the right is a family porch and, at the center –capping the volume with the greatest hierarchical importance– lies the master bedroom, with a privileged view of the valley.

The house was commissioned by a patron whose passion for wood pushed the architects to explore its many uses and expressions. Every joint was designed to be invisible to best generate a seeming balance amongst pieces set or juxtaposed against each other.

The wooden columns rest on an empty Corten steel frame whilst the terrace's columns, floors, and beams are all made of Brazilian teak (Dipteryx odorata) of different densities, such that the natural knots, skeins and streaks of the wood attain a maximized expressive power. The different shades of wood used by the columns in the gallery also plays with a gradient of shading through angling and distance to work as a sundial.

Deep-veined wooden planks were used to form the concrete walls that frame the standout olive tree at the entrance. The pool received an identical treatment on its concrete side walls, and its floor and back were specifically treated like a swatch of blue mosaics. The potted bougainvillea on the the second floor will thrive and lend a lush, colorful levity to the space below them once they are grown.

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Architect: Felipe Ferrer (V.Oid) + Alonso Toledo (Diacrítica)
Collaborating Architect: Karlos Riojas
Location: Lima, Peru
Architect: Felipe Ferrer, Alonso Toledo
Year: 2012 Area: 450 m2
Photographer: Juan Solano

Ca’Paco - Equipo Olivares Arquitectos

2025-07-28T19:08:00.000-07:00

The house is located on the road to Tejina, in an area called Pozo Cabildo, with heavy traffic and close topographic references as (Mesa Mota) or further ones as (el Teide) as unique relevant points.

In front of the plain scenery, the absence of references, the humidity of La Laguna, the proximity of the road and the orography, we try to count on an own topography, so that the resulting volume, focused on the interior, allows to get intimacy at the same time as to provide with sights to the mountains and the setting sun. In this way, the basalt stone covers a compact volume and its gabble roof is covered by soil and a carpet of plants: the roof is a part of the garden.

The plants are organized through an access courtyard (tilted to the setting sun) towards which the indoor swimming pool and kitchen are pointed. Through a corridor people can go into the interior through this courtyard (plant-lined at an inferior level) from the south side.

The interior is planned as a roomy space, flexible by means of folding and sliding doors that can be used as hall, sitting-room, dining-room and also study room. A wing facing east has got bathroom, dressing room and bedroom.

Materials refer to scenery and climate (thick stone walls, underfloor heating, gardened roof deck, crossed ventilation and gardens provide the house with a suitable thermal balance. They are intended to grow up with the house to appreciate the passage of time. So, materials as concrete, basalt stone and wood are the real protagonists. An orange tree in the middle of the courtyard welcomes you with its colour and orange blossom.

On the other hand, it has been taken into account the course of the sun and the time of maximum sun exposure, opening wide holes to the east, south and west and thus, letting in the hall, stairs and bathrooms the natural light and the heat of the sun.

Architects: Olivares Arquitectos Team
Location: Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain
Design Team: Javier Pérez-Alcalde Schwartz, Fernando Aguarta García, Fermín García Morales
Project Year: 2007
Developer: Francisco Delgado González
Builder: Jesús Lorenzo Construcciones S.L.
Photographs: Lluís Casals

House in Pilar - Estudio Parysow - Schargrodsky Arquitectos + Estudio Tarnofsky - Wilhelm

2025-03-04T16:14:00.000-08:00

The issue of individual housing design is combined here with those that attain to this particular suburban location and are used to define the boundaries between the public and private spaces, and the ways of living.

The size of the plot and its solar orientation define the position and shape of the house, creating a public frontal façade and a more private side and back-side that have the benefit optimal sunlight.

At the entrance is a small patio with a wooden enclosure that maintains a certain degree of privacy for the home but, at the same time, allows the setting sun to filter into the double-height hall, which connects both ground floor and first floor.

The lower floor is established as a common-use area, with a high level of flexibility, luminosity and close integration with the side yard and backyard.

On the upper floor, the flexible workspace that is integrated into the double-height hall is the only space that is in direct relation to the street and therefore, the more public area of the upper floor. The bedrooms, on the other hand, are more protected, overlooking the private yards.

The pure geometry and straight forms of the house, along with its materiality and the configuration of the structure, are meant to contrast with the expanse of its natural surroundings. The patio at the entrance encloses a small tree, which highlights the contrast between nature and human intervention.

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Architects: Estudio Parysow - Schargrodsky Arquitectos, Estudio Tarnofsky - Wilhelm
Area: 250 m²
Photographs: Andrés Negroni

Maldonado House - Matías Silva Aldunate Architect

2024-03-25T00:00:00.000-07:00

The idea was to design a second home at the shores of Lake Riñihue X region, for a young couple and their three children.

The land where the house is located had a complex geography, product of its steepness and of having little front and a lot of background. It is located from east to west and is reached by a public road that runs through the entire site in the lakeshore area. Because of its natural condition, we decided to work on the slope by different levels in order to segment its uses. It was decided to deploy the house in the highest part of the land in order to isolate it from the edge, generate privacy and seek for spectacular views towards the lake among the large trees that surround it.

In order to generate living spaces on the slope, it was necessary to perform a large concrete retaining wall. This sets the basis of Maldonado House Project, which is located in a simple place in the shape of a boomerang. This form allows welcoming and integrating spaces.

The support base of the house has all the service areas, warehouses, and parking lots and at the same time is a multipurpose space for various activities. The importance of this level lies in being the support of all the areas of the house and forming part of the access area as well. Therefore, we designed a large central scale, which invites you to come and tour the façade, integrating the different levels.

The upper level that settles on the base contains all the common and private areas of the house. The form responds to the development of three sections that join to form a whole.

The central place (the access to the house) contains the common areas (living-dining-kitchen-terrace), which allows separating the master bedroom from the other sectors. This space gets all the morning light and projects it onto the bedrooms and corridors that form the central terrace. Thus, the slope is dwelled in a functional and efficient way and respecting its surroundings.

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Architects: Matías Silva Aldunate Architect
Area: 2011 m²
Year: 2010
Photographs: Matías Silva Arquitectos

Abbots Way - AR Design Studio

2024-03-24T18:28:00.000-07:00

Abbots Way, the latest creation by AR Design Studio, is a stunning five bedroom house. Bordered by mature trees and a small lake, this spectacular house creates feelings of ultimate relaxation and privacy, whilst its contemporary design juxtaposes superbly with its beautifully rural location, on the south coast of England.

The site is accessed via a private forest lane. Its overtly linear approach extends into the plot and creates the conceptual main axis. A second axis, perpendicular to the former, intersects and leads towards a hot tub and the lake. These axes are defined by timber paths and large stone walls that begin in the garden and run through the house and out the other side. The walls continue through the plot, to link a further a separate office and gym space at the bottom of the garden.

These dividing walls create four separate garden experiences, the first of which being the entrance space. The second is a calm pebbled Japanese herb garden to the rear of the house linking the separate office. The third is a private enclosed wooded space dedicated to the kitchen and master bedroom above. The fourth is a large open expanse of tropical plants and lawn reaching down to the lake, reflecting the open plan living space that looks over it.

A white box, sat on top of the axial walls, gives the upper sleeping floor a light weight image and appears to be floating above the stone axes. It contains the five bedrooms, all with large glazed areas. This provides beautiful tree top views of the lake and surrounding woodland, creating a sense of being nestled amongst the tree canopy whilst lying in bed.

The ground floor living areas, nestled under the box and formed by the axis, are enclosed with large sliding glazed panels that provide a seamless link between the internal and external. The terrace further accentuates this, with the use of a single style of floor tile inside, that extends outside through flush thresholds to really give a true sense of ‘inside/outside living’.

The moat surrounding the house provides a metaphoric sense of security between the outside world and the inner sanctum. Crossing it via a bridge to access the front door, enables the owners to psychologically leave the outside world behind and enter into their own retreat.

The palette of materials used is modest and understated. White and grey render adorn the floating box. Natural stone, inspired by local 12th Century abbey that sets the vernacular for the area, is used for the walls that dominate the ground floor providing rugged contrast. Dark floor tiles inside and out, make the experience of the house, that of calm play between light and space without boundaries. The house is super insulated to create a highly energy efficient home, with under floor heating providing warmth and large overhangs to reduce solar gain in the summer months.

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Architects: AR Design Studio
Location: Hampshire, United Kingdom
Architect in Charge: Andy Ramus
Project Year: 2012
Project Area: m2
Photographs: Martin Gardner

Loft Lo Curro - Matías Silva Aldunate Architect

2023-05-22T22:49:00.002-07:00

The idea was to develop a workshop-studio that houses the arts and the entertainment of a Greek philanthropist. This is a different project that stimulates the senses and becomes a place that allows people feel disconnected and isolated from the urban environment. The land on which the loft is located is a large hill with big trees and abundant vegetation, where you can find spectacular views of the city. In order to maintain its status as a Park, we chose to work with the outdoor landscape by appropriating the vegetation of the neighbors since there are no fences.

We decided to make two separate locations that are located at each end of the ground and which are related by different internal routes, which were carefully designed.

Location 1: Workshop room, kitchen-dining room, Desk-Bedroom, and Bath-Sauna. The internal organization of the loft was based on a concrete floor plan. From the inside you can see the city through a vegetal portico of double height.

Location 2: Barbecue area, pool, bathroom and cellar. This place generates a transversal section in the natural terrain and organizes the loft in a linear way.

Both locations are related through different paths creating rest and contemplation areas.

The materials chosen are mainly striated concrete blocks and metal structures lined in rusted steel. These materials simultaneously become supports for climbing plants that will eventually convert large concrete walls into plant (green) walls. To enhance the vegetation we took advantage of the slope in order to conduct the waters and water the vegetation in a natural way. Also, the loft is integrated into a landscape of lush trees.

Architects: Matías Silva Aldunate Architect
Area: 140 m²
Year: 2011
Photographs: Matías Silva Arquitectos

House Foz do Arelho - Alexandre Burmester Arquitectos Associados

2023-04-10T22:43:00.003-07:00

The land is located on a cliff facing the west with about 4540 m2, in a area of higher elevation. Its orientation allows pleasant scenery, with open views over the Obidos Lagoon – Caldas da Rainha in Portugal.

The implementation proposal was based on the demand of integration of the building on local topography, in order to take advantage of the sunshine and the views.

The house takes part of the sloping ground, developing in accordance with the local topography. Several volumes oriented to the sun and to the views. A part with access to the highest level, other semi-buried is linked by a common circulation, and both with communication with the ground.

At the higher level stays the services areas, which includes a laundry, a toilet service, a pantry, kitchen and a garage. There are also on this floor, the living rooms and dining.

In low-elevation, semi-buried, are the rooms and their sanitary facilities. The height of the construction does not exceed 6.00 meters high, however, the perception of the house is very slight because of is set being partly buried and fuses with the ground and surrounding vegetation.

The relationship of all spaces with the outside is a constant. All the areas allows access to the landscaped environments. The cliff facing the west, where the house was open, the terrain is shaped to provide a more stable platform.

There are outside decks, extending the rooms, and also built an integrated swimming pool. The assumption of the house drawing came from a request of the owner who reported not wanting curves, since he did not like round houses. So was fulfilled.

COMPRAR EN AMAZON

Architects: Alexandre Burmester Associate Architects
Area : 400 m²
Year : 2009
Photographs: Barbosa and Benigno

20th Street Residence - SF-OSL

2023-04-09T22:23:00.001-07:00

The client came to us with a derelict home on 20th street by Potrero Hill. The client´s had a basic need for an upgrade but also more space – to achieve this it soon became evident that expanding up through the roof was our only way. This would not only meet their needs, but could potentially take advantage of the view overlooking the San Francisco Bay.

The existing 1575 sq. ft became 2225 sq ft – the private domain would remain on the 2nd floor – while the public functions would rise to an addition on the roof – a classic but clear programmatic division. We chose to fully comply with all the zoning regulations, and let that be the solution to our design strategies. We maneuvered through many City issues, but managed to solve the project requirements within the required setback of 15 feet, extending 32 feet in height, all within 175 dollars per sq ft.

We were not allowed to change the existing façade other than replacing windows and cladding due to the fact that the city had designated this block as historic. Although we felt that the building itself had no particular historical significance – it was first and foremost a volume - but we felt the block could make sense. We proceeded by distilling the façade components in order to highlight the common denominator of the individual houses.

As the home faces south, the new dining and living space would be excessively hot in the sun during the San Francisco’s Indian summer. We naturally wanted to capture as much of the view as possible, but also ensure that privacy and cooling issues were resolved. The extension would become an outdoor / indoor space enabling the free roaming from the deck in front, through the public space and back to a formerly unappreciated terraced garden in the rear.

We wanted as big of an expanse as possible, but simultaneously we wanted to allow for privacy – the solution was a flexible sunscreen. By perforating the skate-ramp cladding with a pixilated image of the street we combined the city setback guidelines, the shading- and the privacy strategy with the City’s wish to embrace the character of this block.

The once obsolete and underutilized backyard was given new meaning by enabling a continuous loop in-between the private and public functions. The new indoor stair and the outdoors catwalk bridge now connect the private and secluded 2nd floor to the living area on the 3rd level. This allows the owners’ two dogs a free passage to the rear yard 24-7. Our only other injection apart from the color black and the bridge connection was an aim of the highest possible degree of floral diversity - to give the backyard that oasis feeling.

For the interior we embraced the client’s love of raw construction materials. They especially wished for many visible and unpainted wooden surfaces combined with brightness and gloss. We recycled wooden roof joists and custom-built a shelving system. PSL beams were used for the stair connecting the old house to the new, and OSB sheets connected the 2nd floor to the entry.

To weave the house into the urban fabric the building was clad in the inexpensive Ramp Armor material, used to make skateboard ramps. This material, with its precision, makes the building autonomous and differentiates it from the neighboring houses – while simultaneously enhancing the original design by pinpointing the primary components of the original vernacular - in that sense the building once and for all reaches its full potential within the historic envelope.

Sustainable Design is imperative to us. For this project we installed solar panels, and reused existing materials and minimized new materials to minimize waste. Our take on sustainability is foremost about the use of square footage. In every project – and maybe especially in this renovation and extension, every square foot has been thought through in its intention and objective. If we detect a spatial blind spot – we make sure it goes away or comes to life.

Architects: SF-OSL
Location: 1330 20th St, San Francisco, CA 94107, United States
Architect In Charge: Casper Mork Ulnes, Andreas Tingulstad, Grygoriy Ladigin
Landscape Architects: Flora Grubb
Project Year: 2012
Project Area: 2,225 m2
General Contractor: Natal Modica Construction, Inc.
Engineer: Double D Engineering
Metalworking: Defauw Design & Fabrication
Photos: Bruce Damonte

Whale House - Atelier rzlbd

2023-04-09T21:03:00.001-07:00

The Whale house is another spatial experiment by rzlbd, a monochromic contemporary manifesto that evolves around a central detached box painted in red standing free inside a three storey height foyer. The building appears to have swallowed the box symbolizing the contemplation space inside the spacious jaw of the whale that swallowed Jonah.

Situated in Woodbine-Lumsden Neighborhood in Toronto, the lot shares a driveway with its neighbor forcing the architect to design the house even narrower than what zoning bylaw allows. The final design is a 15 feet wide three-storey wood structure that celebrates linearity and sectional revisions.

Upon entrance to the house the distinguished red box containing the powder room stands out in the middle of the welcoming three-storey height space acting as a visual barrier between the home office in the frontier of the house and the more private domestic areas, kitchen and living room on the main floor. The circulation around the red box leads to the main floor and from there to the contemplation space on top of the box where one can overlook the spaces in the house as well as the outside view from the horizontal glazing on the front facade.
The main floor contains a linear kitchen and staircase that act not as visual barriers to the rest of the main floor, but as passages that emphasize the length of the house and lead the south side natural light towards the interior spaces. The private domain of the house is situated on upper levels. The two bedrooms on the second floor share a washroom while the master bedroom on the third floor enjoys a private view to outside world from the windows on north facade, the skylight on slanted ceiling, and the foyer on entry level.

The exterior façade is designed with careful attention to the interior arrangement of the house. The vertical linear glazing corresponds to the levels and the main staircase, so when one descends the staircase the exterior views are never lost.

The horizontal glazing on level one and two respond to the office and the loft respectively. The giant grey whale rests on a land well decorated by its surrounding landscape, the pavement and the vegetation follow the geometry of the house leading you toward a metaphorical journey and a space well designated for hours of meditation and relaxing thoughts.

Architects: Atelier rzlbd
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Team: Reza Aliabadi, Ladan Niknam, Lailee Soleimani
Project Manager: Amin Sheivari
Project Year: 2012
Project Area: 167 m2
Structure: Ali Saeed
Construction: Maxamin Corp
Photographs: Atelier rzlbd

6th 1448 Houghton Residence ZM - SAOTA

2023-04-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

The brief was to create a home for an extended Johannesburg family. Situated in Houghton on a gentle slope, the site is surrounded by trees and has views from the upper levels.

The site was split into two separate sites organised around a common entrance and driveway providing access to both houses.

The houses have a U-shaped configuration organised around an internal courtyard and allows access to all of the living spaces and the swimming pool.

A perforated wall separates the public forecourt from the private spaces.

Internally the spaces pivot around a central volume with a ribbon like spiral stair. The living spaces, kitchen and private garden are to the north, while the games room, pool and gym are to the west.

All of these spaces connect to the courtyard which in turn connects back to the main house and its living spaces.

Because of the west facing façade, a set of large shutters, which drop below the level of the first floor slab, provide shade and protection from the setting sun. Care was also taken in selecting performance-glass that would minimise the impact of direct sun. The bedrooms and study are on the upper level. The passage to the children’s bedroom runs along the perforated wall that separates the building from the driveway.

ANTONI ASSOCIATES were appointed to create a contemporary interior which needed to reflect their family lifestyle. The décor and furniture selected are modern and have strong lines to complement the linear architecture.

A number of bespoke furniture pieces were designed by OKHA Interiors. Neutral palettes with accent colours have been used throughout.

Strong graphic rugs add drama and texture to the rooms which offset against the solid architectural surfaces. Curated art by South African artists amongst others Lyndi Sales and Philip Barlow have been placed throughout the house.

Architects: Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects
Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Project Team: Greg Truen & Ina Fourie Project Year: 2012
Project Area: m2
Interior Design: Mark Rielly, Ashleigh Gilmour & Sarika Jacobs Photos: Adam Letch, Elsa Young

Cottage on the Irish coast in Connemara - Peter Legge Associates

2023-04-08T19:18:00.007-07:00

Connemara. A typical long narrow seashore to road plot; undulating rock strewn stone walled irregular enclosures, enjoying a Southerly aspect seaward with fine vistas all around; the Twelve Pins mountain range dominating the skyline northward.

Clients a retired professional couple with an existing holiday home adjoining the site acquired in the seventies.

Pressure of children and grandchildren’s usage suggested the possibility of amalgamating and developing two existing derelict cottages to create a separate retreat, accommodating living, kitchen, dining and relaxing spaces plus three bedrooms en suite.

The two cottages though close (a mere three metres apart) were not directly in line nor at the same level but were parallel. A basic decision in the redevelopment process was that they should continue to read as separate elements in the landscape.

To allow the cottages read as two separate buildings, a transparent link was required, one totally glazed. This link would become the entry and circulation hub for the house connecting the cottages at both levels.

In the larger western cottage, access to the kitchen/dining area would be via the partially double height living room space, accessed from the glazed entrance and circulation link. Above, the library adjacent to the void leads to a large bedroom en suite.

The smaller eastern cottage would accommodate the master bedroom and en suite. A large store opposite the bathroom would house the main internal elements of the hot water and under floor heating system.

The project explores the relationships between a comfortable interior and the dramatic rugged landscape.

The cottages’ existing condition meant conventional restoration was neither practical nor feasible, the reconstruction entailed the careful removal and stockpiling of the stonework with the large existing quoins reserved for the gable corners, emphasising their unique quality. A heavily insulated stepped raft foundation would provide a base for this reconstruction.

Apart from the glazing and RC wall to support the cantilevered steps in the link, the balance of the construction is of conventional blockwork with the cavity increased to accommodate insulation levels in excess of current regulations. The 300mm deep dry stone rainscreen is laid against the outer face of the blockwork. To emphasise the traditional simplicity of form, gutters and down pipes are concealed within the slate roof and stonework.

The large glazing elements are secured by SS channel units, concealed in the dry stonework and secured to the building structure. The transparency of the link is facilitated by the individually cantilevered concrete stair threads leading up to the first floor and the glazed balustrade to the stairs and landing.

The other element of modernity contrasting with the age-old tradition of the dry stonework is the again glazed lean-to extension of the south facing dining area. A slide/fold arrangement of four doors allows for a full width opening, thus dining and relaxing can move smoothly from kitchen to dining to terrace, all the time enjoying the southern aspect and views across the strand and islands to the broad Atlantic horizon. As with the above elements, the windows are fully glazed externally, framing views northwards to the Twelve Pins and southwards to the seashore.

Inside, the interplay of colours and textures reference the varied landscape; the strand, the sea, the sky and distant mountains. The local stonework is an almost unique geological combination of granite and the darker pre-Cambrian Connemara migmatites. Polished concrete relates to the power washed external terrace and steps. Quality oak doors and floors to the bedrooms. Contrasting to this, soft furnishings and rugs replicate the natural colour palette of the surroundings. Locally crafted joinery add to the richness of materials to create a warm and comfortable atmosphere.

An air source heat pump provides both domestic hot water and under floor heating requirements. This works even with the outside temperatures below zero.

Conclusion

A combination of the contemporary and traditional, perhaps a more acceptable approach to rural development.

COMPRAR EN AMAZON

Architects: Peter Legge Associates
Location: Connemara National Park, Ireland
Design Team: Peter Legge, Cornelia Legge, Carolina Sardinha, Lisa McSharry
Project Year: 2010
Project Area: 150.0 m2
Contractor: Mitchell Construction
Photos: Sean Breithaupt + Yvette Monohan

Niu House - Yoshihiro Yamamoto Architect Atlier

2023-04-08T18:07:00.001-07:00

The site is located at the very end of the residential section developed in the 1970s in Nara, Japan.

There are homogeneous prefabricated houses in one side, and ancient Japanese-styled houses and rich nature spread in another side. It is the typical site of Nara. We planned a new residence for young husband and wife.

The city of Nara, Japan offers a residential landscape with an interesting duality; while prefabricated houses are evidence of development in the modern era, traditional Japanese-style residences represent the historical counterpart.

In designing niu, a residence for a young couple, Yoshihiro Yamamoto of YYAA incorporates both types of urban fabric into the home’s construct.

The house is an intersection of two volumes, one black horizontal and the other a white vertical, and a small courtyard formed by the spatial operation offers up a peaceful rock garden.

The white demarcates open space whereas the black contains more private rooms including a soundproof music studio as well as a utility room.

Despite these differences in program, the interiors share a mix of the customary and contemporary.

Earthy wood finishes on the floor and stairs contrast the sleek metal kitchen counter and accessories.

East meets west at the openings of the house, as one door evokes a sliding shoji screen while panels of glazing framed in black provide a more transparent view of the streets and hills outside.

The fusion of a Japanese engawa – veranda – and a backyard deck extends from the house, blending the hybrid nature of the residence seamlessly into the surrounding neighborhood.

Architects: Yoshihiro Yamamoto Architect Atlier
Location: Ikoma, Nara Prefecture, Japan
Project year: 2012
Project area: 220.36 m2
Structure: Wooden Structure
Photographs: Yohei Sasakura

The Cube - Sharon Neuman Architects

2023-03-27T21:34:00.005-07:00

The cube, brick house was planned for a family of 2 – father & son. a large open space on the ground floor contains the entrance, kitchen, dining and living rooms. Double height space above the dining table allow the stairs to go around it.

A separate area contains the study and bathroom.

The master bedroom upstairs has an open plan with free standing colorful walls which define the bed, bath and closet space.

A detached pergola keeps the cube untouched. the garden is designed for water saving.

Architects: Sharon Neuman Architects
Location: Lehavot Haviva, Israel
Project Year: 2011
Project Area: 430.0 m2
Site Area: 190 sqm
Photos: Amit Gosher

Bascuñan House - Matías Silva Architect

2023-02-15T21:01:00.001-08:00

The Bascuñan House designed by Matías Silva Aldunate Architect is a best vacation home for the client’s grandchildren in Chile. It is a cottage style home away from the main home and is designed in keeping with the surrounding views of the valley.

Much of the facade is dominated by the use of wood and lends a beautiful character to the space and site. It is designed on two different levels with a gabled roof, thus posing a double height ceiling to the main living room. The house is built on a raised concrete plinth and approached by wooden steps leading to an open deck with built-in seats facing the valley.

The first thing that was thought of was to design a simple, practical and functional volume that would take advantage of the spaces in the most efficient way possible on a reduced scale, resulting in a cabin-like volume. This is located on a gently sloping hill, favoring views of the lake and the Villarrica volcano. The volume is formed from a 9x9m square that rises above the natural terrain by means of a concrete plinth that protects it from humidity.

A wooden partition rises on this perimeter, which, based on a simple geometry, seeks to maximize the interior-exterior relationship. Taking into account its location and the climate of extreme rain, it was decided to project the roofs in 2 well-marked pitches, a "gen" element of the architectural proposal that seeks to frame a front and contain a shelter program inside.

The interior program is distributed from a public space that seeks to take advantage of every m2, eliminating any type of corridor or circulation. In this way all environments complement each other efficiently. The access is where everything happens, it is an open space that is integrated under a double-height ceiling.

On this same level is the most private program, which is separated from the rest by means of a ladder that faces the volcano and goes up to a habitable mezzanine that overlooks the living room (central space) and allows the distribution of several beds.

The facades were worked independently according to their views, but under the same language of continuous cladding (ceiling-wall) that gives body, contains and highlights its shape.

Architects: Matías Silva & architects
Area : 100 m²
Year 2010

Double House - Tham & Videgård Arkitekter

2023-01-31T20:29:00.002-08:00

A house organized as a spiralling sequence of four large rooms in four levels. These big spaces without a fixed hierarchy let this house invite the inhabitants to organise their lives following their own preferences.

The building envelope was defined by the full width, the maximum area and height fitting into the building regulations.

More or less mirrored in plan, the two units contain small adjustments in relation to the differences in orientation, light and views.

As a result of the existing topography spatial variations were developed; starting with the four meter ceiling height of the entrance level, the vertical passage up to the horizontally extended spaces opening up towards the surrounding greenery. The upper large room constitutes the link to the roof terrace - the biggest social area in the house.

Construction is in situ cast concrete. Facades are rendered in plaster coloured dark greyish blue. Protruding window boxes made of oak add a 3-dimensional quality to the facade, thus enhancing the depth and massive character of the interior. All glass panes are fixed, with wooden side vents and doors.

Architects: Tham & Videgård Arkitekter; Tham & Videgård Hansson
Area : 360 m²
Year 2005
Land Area: 1,006 m2
Client : Private
Architect In Charge : Bolle Tham & Martin Videgård Hansson
City : Danderyd
Country : Sweden
Photographs: Åke E:son Lindman

La Isla House - Llosa Cortegana Architects

2023-01-31T18:39:00.001-08:00

In recent years the growth of the housing urbanizations in the South of Lima, is creating locations for the housing project a bit afield from the sea, so now houses need to recreate the living on the beach from other scenarios.

This project responds to the challenge of living by the sea but surrounded by a tree landscape, and having an internal and external life that wouldn’t feel the lack of having a permanent view to the sea.

Thus, the idea developed in the course of the design process was to have amplitude in the interior of the house, created from the flexibility of the social space according to the use and family interactions in the day to day.

Spatial continuity is generated by inserting a patio with a tree as a continuation of the exterior landscape, and by developing two contiguous spaces that hold the social life of the house. Space is amplified by the absence of enclosure and the view is directed to the outside.

The house is lived in its interior, but constantly connected to the green landscape that surrounds it. The entrance is displaced generating a “zero” space, a moment of pause that brings the look towards the wooden bend that leaks to the exterior.

The house is the void in the interior of the mass, the space increased by the fluidity of the view and its rugged materiality that allows us to think that the enjoyment of architecture is not an image, but the everyday experience of its spaces.

Architects: Llosa Cortegana Arquitectos
Location: Lima, Peru
Project Year: 2011
Project Area: 269.65 sqm
Photographs: Courtesy of Llosa Cortegana Architects

La Muna - Oppenheim Architecture + Design

2022-10-07T21:04:00.000-07:00

The Japanese philosophy wabi-sabi guided this Aspen chalet renovation to create a mountain den with the least environmental impact.

The design involved the complete renovation and minor addition to one of the first homes built in the ultra-exclusive enclave of Red Mountain in Aspen, Colorado. Thirty years of haphazard changes to the building had hidden the potential beauty and purity of this house. The new design restored and enhanced this rustic ski chalet with all its imperfections — an homage to the Japanese sensibility of wabi sabi.

Paring back decades of haphazard additions to a 1960s mountain home revealed the purity of its original structure and the opportunity to restore and enhance the rustic ski chalet. Applying the wabi-sabi principles of seeing beauty in patina and imperfection, we have used reclaimed timber, local stone, and metals, alongside other sustainability strategies to create a very low-carbon house sensitive to the colors and textures of the landscape.

Now clad in reclaimed regional wood, stone, and weathered steel and copper, the home is intended to make a minimal impact on the natural resources and merge effortlessly with its idyllic surroundings of forest, stream and mountain. Solar collectors provide energy needed for power and hot water, while extremely large operable panels of insulated glass blur the boundaries between inside and out — further enforcing a connection to nature and deep respect of place.

Experientially, La Muna is a place for family and friends to connect deeply with each other and with the environment. Surrounded by rocky mountains, wildflowers, aspen forests, streams, and the occasional bear, we have selected materials that merge with this environment, and designed indoor and outdoor spaces that immerse people in the world around them.

Although modest in scale, windows frame views in all directions, so residents feel part of something much bigger. Nearby trees and landmarks are celebrated through careful sizing and positioning of windows—their aperture and scale immersing people in the landscape, while providing protection from the elements.

Navigating building bylaws like a game of chess—paring back here, so we could add on there—we achieved a composition that supports an optimal life in this setting. Whether sitting with a book at a picture window, listening to wildlife from the outdoor hot tub, or sharing a meal around a fire, La Muna is about elevating the experience of Red Mountain.

Architects: Oppenheim Architecture + Design
Location: Aspen, Colorado, United States
Project Year: 2011
Project Area: 3500 square feet
Project group: Chad Oppenheim, Juan Calvo, Leslie Abraham, Carolina Jaimes, Cyril Manyara
Photographs: Laziz Hamani, Robert Reck