Sumit Singhal Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination.
House Franz in Buenos Aires province, Argentina by BAKarquitectos
April 29th, 2012 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: BAKarquitectos
Summer house BUILD IN THE FOREST Propose alternatives to ensure the survival of natural environments
Mar Azul is a place we know for many years for that reason when in 2004 built the first work we knew we had to intervene in a country that despite its great scenic beauty never had a legal support that will secure the heritage of greed of which lotean with one goal: make as land rent. What does it have a code, understanding the logic of this privileged environment, regulated by solving the mismatch between that subdivision inappropriate and the possibilities of building without losing the environmental quality of the site. This situation described is added as aggravating the proliferation of a type “picturesque house in a place of fantasy,” which gradually “domesticating” the forest, still owner of a rugged powerful presence. Operate at that site, it meant then, assuming their imbalances as a challenge and see how far, architects can make a contribution alternative.
Location: Mar Azul, partido de Villa Gesell, Buenos Aires province, Argentina
Architects: María Victoria Besonías, Luciano Kruk
Collaborator: Arq. Nuria Jover – Enzo Vitali
Area: 337 m2
Construction year: 2010
Photos: Gustavo Sosa Pinilla
The response was the proposal of a minimal architecture resources, both material and formal, not only as aesthetic choice but as an ethical principle of recovery of a more rational use of the various resources available. That architecture was incorporated into the landscape stripped willing to membership, seeking to integrate into the existing reality. For this to happen you need to “listening” what the site communicates the first approaches must be free of prejudices about the same in order to capture not only the data and therefore tangible and measurable qualifying, but those atmospheres that place provides and that we can only understand if our eyes are free of preconceptions about it. This means practicing the exercise of “seeing for the first time.” Consider the data, letting those feelings overcome by providing the place and imagine himself as the capitalized project is essential to be able to fuse architecture and landscape.
We had practiced this exercise (almost like a professional service) vacationing in Mar Azul repeatedly, so that we valued the powerful presence of his forest landscapes, sensations that provide constant changes in time, but also had experienced the microclimate that provides : attenuation of the strong offshore winds that occur under the trees, the constant shadow protecting these provide heat in the summer while producing a very wet winter, which for us was instrumental in the decision-making at the when planning, the fact that under the pine trees is reduced considerably the amount of light throughout the year. We also knew that the forest does not require maintenance other than removing dry vegetation, if no new species are introduced to break that harmony.
Take advantage of what the environment offers
Recognizing this particular microclimate was determining (together with the available budget and need no maintenance of the house) of the aesthetic-constructive decisions that defined the work. The need to capture light led to conceive the first work as a “partially covered” and then solve it with large panes of glass from the inside will enable views in all directions and reflect the landscape outside the house making mimetizara with it. The need to accelerate the implementation deadlines of the work and avoid the after we decided to build with exposed concrete. The prevailing shade on the other hand allowed us to use this material and that it provides sufficient thermal protection from spring to late fall. Preparation for the winter was not too important (though of course it was planned) because of their status summer house. The insulation was resolved with a waterproof concrete compactness and a study of how bound for the evacuation of rainwater will be made very quickly.
Wisely use the resources available
The expressive quality of concrete and its strength and impermeability properties already mentioned, made superfluous any type of surface finish, achieving a low cost of implementation at the ends without the need for future maintenance. On the other hand the color and texture of concrete made with formwork boards resulted from a strong presence and mimetic at a time, allowing the work to be expressed in harmony with the landscape. It is short, an envelope of only two materials – concrete and glass – solves the integration with the landscape and responds to formal issues, structural, functional, finishing and maintenance.
The same criterion the resolution of the outdoors was the result of performing the operation on the environment less. He avoided all kinds of landscaping not only for the convenience of keeping not only to avoid leaving unnecessary limits expressed in a landscape that are not very built, nor industries contrasting landscape features of this privileged environment. We like this marked homogeneity of coniferous forest interrupted only now and then for some acacia and pampas grasslands of our other hand are the dominant vegetation in the dunes near the sea.
Images Courtesy Gustavo Sosa Pinilla
SEVERAL HOMES, SOME QUESTIONS
The architectural proposal that our study has been done in the forest of Mar Azul, concerned in joining this environment that originates, and away from the stereotypes of the place, has found great acceptance. Several orders for houses with a special request to repeat the same solution constructive and aesthetic value both decisions on a more relaxed housing, lack of maintenance and construction. This is certainly very gratifying for us but in turn raises a series of questions that become food for thought in each new order. Let them raised is one way to begin to tackle it.
We wonder: If the proposal is submitted to both the functional environmental unit how to aesthetic requirements, use and maintenance raised by constituents, is it valid to seek a new solution without further justification other than to try something different, relying only to novelty?
Images Courtesy Gustavo Sosa Pinilla
If instead we choose to continue making concrete houses is it licit to produce changes in appearance such as by using different types of forms, manipulating the surface finish with special finishes or using colored concrete? All these procedures are not they purely decorative maneuvers that go against the principles of austerity and simplicity that gave rise to the proposal?
In contrast to this proposal materiality unadorned, as experienced, a prototype and deepen with each particular request membership to the landscape and finding different ways of inhabiting it not seem logical and ethically correct?
Is that it then the challenge of each new project? Focus on adapting this prototype aesthetic-constructive to the unique needs and those who will inhabit it and the uniqueness of the lot and its surroundings? Reinforce each proposal so that what is built there can not break with the unit that represents the forest landscape and to ensure welfare of those who inhabit it? Insist on finding a way to turn every house in “nest or burrow” (1)?
MEMORY Site
The land on which we should intervene is close to the corner, is of small size and the most relevant data presented is a gap of almost three meters from one end to another of a front of only 15 meters. The lot itself is well forested with pine trees of great size, but below it, the forest thinned abruptly so, try to preserve the copies of the terrain, was one of the conditions of the search solutions.
The commission
The request of principals, a couple with grown children, was a small house of about 80m2) of concrete (as had been in place) to be used mainly in summer. with only two bedrooms and one bathroom minimum measures so that they could devote the largest area to area as they thought to use social accompanied by friends or their children.
The proposal
The steep slope of the lot, the privacy it generates on the street in much of the front and the need to use the small amount required to reduce as much as possible the circulation areas of the given program, are the issues that are unique to this house constructive aesthetic with a proposal similar to others built by the studio in Mar Azul.
In response to these factors we decided that the best thing was to propose a very compact housing resolved in two plants that occupy the lower floor area in order to safeguard as many trees, while noting that this resolution at two levels in an area of steep allowed us to contact the ground at almost every room in the house. Thus we solved the program within a square prism lying on the slope that has been emptied a quarter of its volume creating a partially covered outdoor space with double height pine crossed by two major freight. Space in its scale and location in relation to different areas of the house becomes the main protagonist of this proposal.
The functional organization
Access to housing is defined by the double height space partially covered. From here and through two large windows you can enter the area developed as a unique social environment with the same kitchen, a toilet and a small staircase leading to the sleeping area. The entrance floor has its sides almost completely buried so that it was necessary to enter the light from the upper floor through an opening on one side and overhead of a high window in the stairwell on the other.
Access to the second floor via the staircase is an opportunity to feel the presence of the landscape as one of its sides can be fully glazed incorporated therein, once up through a small hall dealer can access a bathroom with a large window, the guest bedroom overlooking the partially covered and the master bedroom with expansion to the top of the ground through a deck. This terrace of expansion to be very high on the street enjoys privileged views of the landscape and privacy. views
Construction
The house is constructed of three basic materials: exposed concrete, glass and wood exterior deck. The slabs of different partitions and volumes supported by concrete beams and inverted are completed with a minimum slope to produce rapid runoff of rainwater. H21 was used concrete with the addition of a fluidizing to this mixture with low quantity of water to harden, resulting in very compact and requires no sealing. The floors are concrete screed cloths divided by plates of aluminum. The openings are of dark bronze anodized aluminum. The heating system, since there is no natural gas in the area, decided to combine salamander, bottled gas stoves and electric stoves.
Furniture
Except the beds, couches and chairs the rest of the equipment of this housing is fixed in concrete.
This entry was posted
on Sunday, April 29th, 2012 at 11:56 pm.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
email
Facebook
Twitter
RSS Feed
