FLOATING HILL HOUSE

The project stands out for how the house rests on the hill, giving the impression that it floats over it. For this, a minimum earth movement was carried out, only for the parking of the house, meanwhile at the rear, the hill was left intact before the delicate imposition of the infrastructure. For this to be made, two cantilevers were designed in the corners of the rear facade that remain on the hill. The first is a concrete column, imposing, but at the same time delicate with a trapezoidal shape so that it is the only element that supports the cantilevered mezzanine of the social terrace. The second, a beam that floats on the ground supporting the main bedroom and one of the secondary bedrooms.

Open spaces were created where all the rooms are directly integrated with the natural environment. Windows and central patios were used throughout the main areas to create a connection between the environment, providing abundant natural light and maximizing cross ventilation that responds to the tropical climate where the house is located. To protect the house from the solar incidence, a series of pergolas based on metal plates were designed on a large scale that in turn works as an element that enhances the design of the house. The use of a formal living room was eliminated and it became a living room-terrace that is integrated through floor to ceiling doors with all the main rooms of the house.

80% of the exterior walls of the house are finished with cementitious products. Inside, exposed natural concrete walls were used while in the guest bathroom a wall was left with the same finish, creating industrial contrasts. Playing with the naturalness of the concrete, the house is the ceilings of the public areas are made of “machimbre” wood and the floor of travertine marble, these being the main materials of the project.