Optimizing Privacy and Contact with Nature

CASA GARCIAS BY WARM ARCHITECTS
Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Optimizing Privacy and Contact with Nature

Optimizing privacy and contact with nature is a central theme of the majority of current residential projects. A direct reaction to growing population and limited space, we are frequently seeking a haven of our own. The Casa Garcias by Warm Architects is one such project.

Located in Cancún, Mexico, the house is bordered on two sides by residential lots, one side by the road and on the remaining side by public green space. In creating a courtyard on the garden-facing side, the architects better integrated the house with the adjacent nature. The principle living areas were then oriented around the interior courtyard to optimize the views and privacy.

Concrete dominates the structure of the project in its various forms. From external stucco to polished concrete, varied shades and styles of the material were used throughout. Different tones were achieved by mixing regional additives. Even the stairs are made from concrete and seem suspended in space.

Since the clients had no children, the house was designed to be open and visually accessible. Double height atriums and mezzanines create interior views that keep the space bright and airy. Overall, the combination of materials, low density walls and the design strategy ensured an affordable house for the clients.

via © archiexpo

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A Modern Reinterpretation of a Traditional Portuguese Architecture

CASA NO PRÍNCIPE REAL BY CAMARIM ARQUITECTOS
Lisbon, Portugal

A Modern Reinterpretation of a Traditional Portuguese Architecture

Limited space is a ubiquitous challenge in urban settings. On the bright side, cramped conditions often lead to unexpected ingenuity. For the Casa no Príncipe Real in Lisbon, Portuguese architecture firm Camarim Arquitectos turned a tiny plot of only 41 square meters into a roomy, five-storey, single family home.

That architects circumvented the spatial confinements by assigning each floor a separate function and organizing the different spaces around a vertical atrium. Thanks to the openness of the atrium, natural light fills the space and air circulates easily, turning the atrium into a thermal chimney that encourages passive cooling in the warmer months. Angular stairways cut through the atrium and provide a continuous path from bottom to top.

The exterior of the home reinterprets the celebrated azulejo. A melange of flat tiles, bas-relief tiles and a perforated steel screen on the top floor recall the traditional blue ceramic decorations that define Lisbon.

The home is the first of its kind in Lisbon to made with a light steel construction system (LSF). The system was chosen for its superior thermal and acoustic properties and its adaptability to the small construction space.

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A Modern Extension with a Modular Courtyard

A Modern Extension with a Modular Courtyard
by CHRISTOPHER MEGOWAN DESIGN,
Melbourne, Australia

Located in Melbourne, Australia, the Convertible Courtyards House was conceived to perfectly adapt to the area’s notoriously changeable weather. The house is part of a series of heritage protected cottages, rife with unrealized potential that Christopher Megowan Design was tasked with unveiling. The project saw the addition of a kitchen, living area, dining area, bathroom, master bedroom and more.

To ensure that the newly added living space received enough natural light, the architects also created a central courtyard between the modern extension and the original structure. This central courtyard has a retractable roof that entirely covers the space and allows for the regulation of sun and rain, providing a protected connection to the exterior.

To further blur the boundaries, large double doors were placed on either side of the living room. To complete the perfect picture, the house has a whole host of eco-friendly amenities, including solar panels, sustainable and locally sourced timber and intelligent rainwater collection.

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A Sustainable House with a Breathtaking View

A Sustainable House with a Breathtaking View on the Ocean
by FOUGERON ARCHITECTURE, USA

The Fall House by Fougeron Architecture is a small piece of heaven. The 3-bedroom house is firmly anchored on the beautiful coast and gently follows its natural curve. With its massive windows you enjoy the breathtaking view over the ocean.

The Fall House’s interior was meant to be a haven, protected from the harsh sun and winds of the outside. The long volume following the land is intelligently composed of glass systems on the North side and copper on the South side. The copper protects the house from the local weather, while the windows and doors allow natural light to come in. Inside, the house is organized around a central glass library that separates the different living spaces.

On the side, a one-story block of concrete includes another bedroom. It is topped with a green roof that keeps this perpendicular wing well blended in the surrounding environment. The green roof also underlines the effort made to keep this house as sustainable as possible. Natural light, efficient heating and ventilation inside or an on-site wastewater treatment make the Fall House a bit more than a dreamy view over the ocean.

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Maximum Sunlight Access

Maximum Sunlight Access with Sliding Wood Doors

Invermay House by Moloney Architects, Australia
"Winner of the 2015 National Rising Star Design Award at the Australian Timber Design Awards"

The house is situated in the Invermay district to the north of the city and was designed for a family of six who wanted a residence that draws attention to its rural setting.

The plan was to have as many rooms as possible oriented north for sunlight access. The living area should be on the ground floor so that you could walk straight out into the landscape.

The design response is a simple rectilinear form that cantilevers over the hillside. All living spaces are on the ground floor, with wide sliding wood doors giving access to the landscape.

Views into the tree canopy level start to open up as the house starts to edge out over the hillside. At the end of the cantilever there is a ‘view deck’ – a small gathering space for watching the sunset and the town lights.

The upstairs plan includes two large void spaces, one above the entry space and one above the downstairs living area. The void connect the spaces vertically, and operable skylights allow warm air to vent through the roof during summer. Upstairs, the sleeping areas are aligned in a row to give each space access to the winter sunlight with wooden window and door systems of the latest technology.

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Spring Time - Best Time for Remodeling Projects

Contemporary Remodel of a Classic Design Home by Klopf Architecture, San Francisco, USA

A Mid Century Modern House In California Got A Contemporary Remodel


The home owners loved the classic, original look of the home in Mountain View, California, but needed it updated for their contemporary lifestyle.

The new, natural wood exterior siding runs through the house, updating one of the classic design features of the "Eichler homes". In the late 1940s, Joseph Eichler was the only merchant builder in America who built modernist style homes on a large scale, designed by skilled architects and using quality materials.

Once you enter the home there’s a small courtyard separating the home office and the main house. Inside the home office, there’s plenty of light from the windows and floating shelves provide plenty of storage.

Across from the courtyard you can see into the main living area of the home. The barriers between the great room and kitchen were removed to create a large open plan living, dining, and kitchen area. Off the great room and at the side of the house, there’s an outdoor patio area with comfortable furniture and a large fireplace built into a concrete wall.

Back inside is the dining table, where sleek white furniture has been paired with pops of orange, and outside there’s another patio for outdoor dining.

In the large kitchen designed for entertaining, there’s a wall of built-ins and an oversized island. There’s plenty of storage and lots of counterspace for everyone to prep and cook together.

In the master bedroom, the bed now sits on a platform that’s tucked within a wall of built-in wooden wardrobes with leather handles. By replacing the master closet with these built-ins the designers were able to create a large master bedroom.

In the bathrooms, wood has been combined with white tiles on the walls and floor to create a clean contemporary look.

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Visual Extension of the Interior to the Exterior

Unique Views in Three Directions

Sinbad Creek, Swatt Miers Architect, Sunsol, California, USA

Sinbad Creek enjoys unique views in three directions – a beautiful upslope hillside with mature oaks and a giant walnut tree to the east, a canyon ridge to the west, and Mission Peak to the south. The owners wanted a modern home that would embrace its beautiful setting, taking advantage of the many vistas that the house affords.

Accessed from a driveway at the northern edge of the property, the design is organized around a linear circulation spine that runs from north to south. Major spaces are placed diagonally across the spine from each other, creating unique diagonal vistas through the house.

Ceiling heights vary, from a low, compressed entry to a two-story dining room, bringing additional spatial drama to the composition.

The alternating spaces enjoy hillside and canyon- ridge views, while the rooms at the south end of the linear spine, the living room on the ground floor and the second floor master bedroom, enjoy beautiful views of Mission Peak in the distance. Generous patios and terraces are located on the east and west sides of the house, for outdoor living and for enjoying the unique views in all directions.

The form of the house is at the same time simple and strong. Major spaces, with wall-to-wall glass, flank both sides of the vertical core. Deep, cantilevered roof and terrace overhangs frame views and visually extend the interior spaces to the exterior.

At the south end of the building, a double cantilever, with the upper level roof overhanging the second floor and the second floor overhanging the first, creates a dramatic visual thrust in the direction of the distant view of Mission Peak.

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