The Txai House merges elements of the vernacular colorful Bahian Houses with the precise lines of Brazilian Modern architecture. Located in front of a beautiful beach in the city of Itacaré – in the Brazilian northeast – the site of Txai House reaches 13 meters above the sea level. This topographical condition allowed for, even with the existing treetops, a beautiful view of the coast.
To avoid excessive verticalization and still accommodate the entire necessity program, the house rests on two levels without any pavement overlapping. This solution ended up creating a new artificial configuration for the plot, as a second nature, which recomposes the original topography, now with the house settled.
On the lower floor, we have the living room. With a large veranda, all of the window frames can be entirely recessed. The living room then becomes an open space, protected by a large flat pre-stressed slab. The kitchen is joined to this social area, facing the dining room and contained within a wooden volume that also holds a small utility area and a washroom.
In front of the veranda-living-room, there is an infinity pool and a solarium with chaise-longs. In the back, a patio with vegetation ends up allowing for cross-ventilation in the area. The structural system was modulated in spans of 9.70m by 6.30m, in a rational domino system. On the roof of this first floor there is an open wooden deck with a wonderful view of the sea. On this second floor are also the bedrooms, located under the pitched roof in colorful wooden and stucco volumes.
There is no internal connection from the living room and the kitchen with the bedrooms. The trajectories therefore, are always done from the outside, with the garden as passage. The residents experience the climactic conditions while going from one to the other.
The bathrooms extend outside of the roof and are all opened to the outside, having their own individual gardens defined by walls, like patios. The doors in front of the rooms look out to a generous 2.5m-wide veranda where the hammocks rest on the recycled wood roof. The mashrabiya doors – a wooden latticed element, traditional in modern and colonial Brazilian architecture – shade the interior of the bedrooms, allowing the breeze to pass; and they can remain completely open for complete control of the interior light.
The materials used in the house are all local. Efforts were made to also have raw finishings that age well in the aggressive tropical coastal climate. In the case of the volumes, using a color chart inspired by the local houses, the architecture sought live and pure colors which, when applied on the wooden mashrabiya, contributes to the durability of the material in creating a thick layer of protection against the salt air.
The House Txai offers a radical experience of integration between the inside and out. It is a place to drink coconut water, swaying in the hammocks. The tropical atmosphere of Bahia impregnates all of the spaces and the contact with the garden is necessary in order to use the house, as it integrates the trajectories of quotidian life.
The arrival at House B+B – the access to the social area – is through an architectural trajectory, via an open ramp, located on the eastern side of the construction. This space is protected by hollowed-out concrete elements to the side, which create surprising effects of light and end up functioning as protection from bad weather conditions.
It is an interstitial space between the protected inside of the construction and the open garden. The ramp, long and smooth, extends the transition from interior to exterior creating the constant sensation of environ ment changing. This solution was vastly used by Brazilian modernism, which consecrated the radical use of ramps as a way of vertical circulation while reaffirming the Corbusian precepts of architectural promenade.
There is an intentional uncertainty about the character of this space: internal or external?
The reference to modernism lies also in the wall of hollowed-out elements, renowned from the 30’s in Brazil, as a solution to be reproduced on large scale, very appropriate for the tropical climate since it allows for shading without blocking of the fresh breeze.
The social area of the house creates a sensation of coziness and comfort, in an open space, without any structural interference for the organization of the furniture layout.
A 3.5m sliding door allows the kitchen to be completely integrated to the dining room. The counter used for food preparation is behind the window overlooking the ramp and receiving the ‘constructed’ light, filtered by the hollowed-out elements. Thus, the kitchen becomes a lit-up space and a pleasant ambient.
Different than the usual solution, the rooms are on the first floor – in direct relation to the garden – and can be also accessed internally via a staircase connected to the living room on the top floor. The wooden elements on this floor’s facade allow for the internal control of the sunlight and thus provides for a great thermal performance.
The use of ‘raw’ materials such as exposed concrete and wood give a lively aspect to residence, constantly changing over time. The architecture of B+B House sought to create a cozy, welcoming space, an intimate home as much for the daily lives of the residents as well as for the reception of friends in social gatherings.
Redux House is located in the countryside of São Paulo, Itatiba, in a gated community called Quinta da Baroneza. The open land, on a downwards slope terrain and with a west facing view, is on the edge of a large environmental preservation area of a native forest, aspects which determined the implantation as well as the residence’s architectural parti.
The house was built on the highest level possible, respecting the existing topography in order to could gain the view of the sunset and the vegetation with the least impact on the surroundings.
The project is composed of a slab floor, 4 programmatic boxes and a slab ceiling. Externally to the slab of the floor there appears a great concrete volume, pool and deck, which is projected along the decline of the site and terminates floating through a small although striking span.
The slab of the floor, at 50cm above the ground is supported by beams set back, intensifying the delicate shape in which the projected was implanted onto the land. Visually, the house seems to float. The program was divided into four programmatic blocks. The first block contains the intimate area (4 bedrooms and sauna), the second only has the master suite. On the third we have the services area (kitchen, laundry room, sitting room, bathrooms and maids rooms). Finally, in the last block we have the garage and the technical area.
The distribution of the blocks in the slab floor created interstitial spaces, configuring circulation, terraces and the large space for the living room. This latter, enveloped by a skin of glass with sliding panels open and create a dialogue between the internal and external (native forest and the west). The slab of the roof, the same size as the slab on the floor, overlaps the programmatic volumes which, because of the different heights, here it leans on the roof there it has a reduced ceiling height. The emptiness between the volumes and the slab create an inner rhythm and, simultaneously, makes it possible to have improved natural lighting in the house.
The two main volumes that include the bedrooms are completely clad in vertically slatted wooden panels which open almost entirely. In the day, the panels filter the sunlight creating a texture of light and shade and, at night, it transforms the boxes into large lanterns which light up the land.
The basic concept of the Toblerone House can be described as a unique image: a free first floor with large sliding glass doors which support a wooden box delimited by concrete beams. The first floor houses the collective program, with living room, utilities and kitchen. On the second floor are the three bedrooms, the den and a home theater. The conceptual and programmatic simplicity of the house joins a structural simplicity: a 14-pillared grid, organized in two lines, support the construction. All of the pillars are exposed with a rounded format. When the doorframes of the first floor are open, the living room becomes a free floor, totally open to the gardens – a house on pilotis. The simple architectural concept reminds of the Domino corbusian system, a type of manifestation about the free structure. The shape of the land allowed for a longitudinal implanting of the house with spatial permeability between the two extreme areas, with a loose canopy in the garden. The apparent architectural simplicity ends up revealing complex spaces. The veranda, which extends from the living room, becomes a central living space, with an external fireplace. The office, integrated to the living room, is delimited by a stand, free from any other element. This office is connected with the back patio, which has beautiful jabuticabeiras. On the second floor, the master bedroom and bathroom open to a beam – the roof of the veranda – and look out over the treetops that perfume the beam of the first floor. The wood establishes a dialogue with the other raw material, such as the concrete, and is used as a sun filter for the bedrooms. Each piece of this brise-soleil has a triangular shape and was fixed to folding doors, able to be kept open according to the needs of the users. On the ground floor, cross-ventilation allows for excellent thermal comfort. The simplicity of Toblerone House surpasses the organization of the house, the solutions for environmental comfort, or even in the everyday use by the inhabitants, little surprises complete the architecture.
The Bahia House is an ecological house. But, not in the technological sense, not in the contemporary sense of the word “sustainability”, it does not have the very latest state-of-the-art gadgets that make it possible to optimize electric expenditure. The organization of the floor plan and the use of materials come close to those of traditional architecture. The Bahia House makes use of the old popular knowledge that has been reinvented and incorporated throughout the history of Brazilian architecture. The house was considered for where it is, for the climate of where it is, for Bahia. And, for this no “green” software was used, no equipment and no calculations were made. The builders of bahian traditional houses have long-known how to keep interiors cool even with a blazing sun of more than 40ºC, long before the corbusian ideas had been tropicalized or even before Sir Norman Foster had given a precise, technological and scientific dimension to sustainable architecture. These bahian houses have roofs of clay, a banal material made in a rustic manner, and wooden ceilings. The openings have large panels of wooden Mashrabiyas brought to Brazil by the Portuguese colonial architecture since the first centuries of its occupation of the American territories, and its origin is of an Arabian cultural influence. These wooden panels provide vast comfort to the interior. The traditional bahian house uses the northeastern wind blowing in from the sea to organize the floor plan and has cross ventilation in its principal spaces, always making the interior cool and airy. The Bahia House uses all these elements that are traditional to Brazilian houses. These adjustments of the Portuguese house to a tropical climate were always studied and applied by modernism in Brazil. The result in this case is a very pleasant house, where the interior protects from the hot and sunny climate outdoors. The floor plan is entirely organized around a central patio, making the cross ventilation in all the spaces possible and a view that looks in, to a grassed garden and two exuberant mango trees. The Bahia House privileges the environmental comfort of its dwellers but does not make use of the “most modern technology” for this. author > marcio kogan co-authors > suzana glogowski, samanta cafardo interior design co-authors > diana radomysler collaborators > henrique bustamante, sergio ekerman team > beatriz meyer, carolina castroviejo, eduardo chalabi, eduardo glycerio, eduardo gurian, elisa friedmann, gabriel kogan, lair reis, maria cristina motta, mariana simas, oswaldo pessano, renata furlanetto
Casa Gama Issa è definita dallo stesso progettista una “scatola bianca”, un unico enorme volume che sembra avvolgere qualsiasi cosa.
La zona giorno trova spazio nel vano principale a doppia altezza che si affaccia sul giardino con una parete completamente vetrata composta da ante scorrevoli. Aperte le ante, scompare ogni confine tra interno ed esterno: la zona giorno si trasforma in un ambiente unico comunicante con la piscina di 30 metri realizzata nel giardino.
Sul retro una enorme parete rivestita in legno contrasta con il bianco del cemento.
Dalla porta scorrevole dell’atrio si ha accesso al soggiorno, dove trova spazio una enorme libreria che sostiene le scale nascondendole alla vista.
Si tratta di un progetto lussuoso ed elegante il cui contrasto con la vita reale della città è sottolineato dallo stesso Kogan che con ironia dichiara: “A San Paolo non abbiamo bisogno di preoccuparci della coerenza con l’ambiente, è un caos totale, il caos più assoluto….In questa città, amata e odiata, nulla è progettato per essere completamente integrato nel contesto urbano”.
The house was designed with specific objectives in mind since the customer had requested the residence to be architecturally impressive with ample spaces for entertaining guests, while leaving certain areas completely independent.
The line of the house is particularly dynamic and has an articulated floor plan with split levels and volumes that cover an ample overall space, but at the same time create a warm, cosy atmosphere. So, as you walk along paths, up steps, over patios and roof gardens, unexpectedly inviting areas appear that promise further surprises.
On the inside, the house is centred around a two-storey high hall. From here you can reach the two lounges on the ground floor, the living room in the basement and up a stairway to the bedrooms on the first floor. A bright corridor leads from the basement to the slightly detached annexe on an intermediate level.
The inside is connected to the outside by a series of pathways that wind through the greenery of hanging roof gardens and the surrounding park.
Tra un campo da Polo e un filare di eucalipti, la villa è il buen retiro di un appassionato di cavalli e musica lirica.Interamente declinata in orizzontale, rimanda alla dinamica in linea del gioco del Polo.
La vastità della pianura argentina prosegue negli spazi interni tramite finestrature angolari e una grande parete vetrata.Una scala rettilinea conduce a un tetto terrazza, palco d’onore per le partite del gioco dei re.
Nato in ambito di cooperazione internazionale, il progetto del nuovo asilo per la comunità di Um al Nasser “New children’s land”, si propone di portare l’eccellenza in termini di architettura, sostenibilità e programmi didattici nel contesto di emergenza umanitaria della striscia di Gaza. Per rispondere ad esigenze culturali si è scelto di dare alla scuola un impianto introverso, che crea un’oasi felice protetta dall’esterno. Aule comuni e flessibili, un ampio spazio aperto e un patio introverso creano i presupposti per una didattica alternativa. Caratteristica della scuola New children’s land ed elemento di evocazione culturale è la volta nubiana: la troviamo nel portico, asse principale del progetto, pensato per proteggere l’area amministrativa dalle piogge e fornire uno spazio ombreggiato e multiuso; essa caratterizza lo spazio di ciascuna aula e il suo ripetersi rimanda ad un paesaggio di dune di sabbia, evidenziato da una linea continua che quando si abbassa diventa un elemento ludico e di socializzazione per i bambini. Questo antico tipo di volta, che non richiede l’utilizzo di centine, rappresenta una soluzione innovativa e sostenibile per la striscia di Gaza, dove la difficoltà nel reperire le risorse comporta la necessità di ricorrere a materiali locali e tecniche costruttive economiche e semplici. Nella stessa ottica vengono realizzati i muri in mattoni pressati (prodotti in loco) e i tetti verdi. Alla scelta di soluzioni economiche si accompagna l’attenzione al funzionamento bioclimatico dell’edificio: la tecnica di auto-costruzione in mattoni pressati garantisce l’inerzia termica delle pareti, i tetti verdi isolano le coperture d’inverno e favoriscono il raffrescamento estivo. Le aule sono progettate per avere una ventilazione incrociata che aumenta il comfort nelle stagioni calde, mentre le piccole aperture sulla parete alta delle volte sono realizzate per favorire la fuoriuscita dell’aria esausta. Le volte, intonacate di bianco, respingono il calore estivo e dialogano con il cielo. All’opposto i muri perimetrali, intonacati color sabbia, instaurano un legame visivo con il terreno. Il progetto, infine, consente di trasferire alla popolazione locale nuove conoscenze in ambito costruttivo, attraverso un cantiere-scuola e un vero e proprio manuale di istruzioni lasciato agli abitanti affinché abbiano memoria del lavoro svolto: scelte architettoniche, tecniche costruttive e bioclimatiche vanno così di pari passo con obiettivi sociali, rendendo il progetto sostenibile sotto ogni punto di vista.
Luogo – Um al Nasser, striscia di Gaza
Anno – 2016
Committente – Vento di Terra ONG
Consulenze – AICS (agenzia italiana per la cooperazione allo sviluppo), Tavola valdese, CEI
The concept of working with sunken ground comes from a mission of fabricating an experience both intimate and intense combined with a strong feeling of harmony with the environment and intimate contemplation. Sunken Ground looks at concepts present in Shouzou gardens tradition, such as the rock, the outcrop and the occidental equivalent of the grotto to then travel in space and time to the image of hanging gardens and further on to the concept of a sunken courtyard. The result is a combination both of intense distortions of the ground and an acute sense of three dimensions, where one feels itself draped by concrete, steel and vegetation, free to explore a thickened version of a microcosm in a series of pocket landscapes for reflection, relaxation and ultimate playfulness.
