Natú, a hybrid project for its horizontality and verticality, is conceptualized by seeking to adapt to the terrain and thus modify the natural topography to the minimum, which allows the use of the views towards “Parque del Este”. Likewise, it is proposed to incorporate green areas to each housing unit through garden slabs. The volumetry and aesthetic quality is favored by the presence of its natural counterpart, seeking to provide a particular experience through the integration of natural ecosystems as circuits within the project.
This is a residential complex of 2 houses developed in a beautiful beach front property in a very exclusive area of the Peninsula de Nicoya. Both houses sits in a very open terrace with a gentle topography, surrounded by trees overlooking the Pacific Ocean and the white sandy beach of Playa Hermosa.
Private and Social areas with big openings where planned to open their space to the ocean, gardens and forest that surround this tropical beach.
Each house was designed for users to experience the tropical weather and beautiful nature, and every single space of both houses has a great relation with the exterior, bringing in the natural light to all the interior areas and looking for cross ventilation using the sea breeze year around.
Costa Rica Treehouse is inspired by the jungle of this densely forested site on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. Built entirely of teak wood harvested on-site, the retreat engages with the jungle at each of its three levels: at the forest floor, the middle floor is nestled within the trees, and the top level rises above the tree canopy with views of the surf at nearby Playa Hermosa beach.
The clients are surfers as well as avid environmentalists, and this project reflects their deep commitment to sustainable land management in Costa Rica. Designed as an open-air surfer hut, the project engages the Costa Rican landscape in various ways, from the vegetation accessible just off the main floor, to the larger weather and surf patterns one can experience on the top level.
Costa Rica Steel frame house creates a tropical atrium bringing the jungle inside.
The client commissioned Studio Saxe to create a dwelling in the jungle that brings the outside in. The property was composed of a slope that went down into a beautiful creek that overlooks the jungle. Studio Saxe decided to create a large triple height space to be able to see the sky all the way from the bottom of the jungle floor and to appreciate the full scope of every tree that surrounds the house. This volume of space enclosed in glass is a powerful moment that brings shadows inside, natural ventilation and provides a place which is always surrounded by the jungle.
Villa Monoi is a holiday home at the southern end of Playa Tamarindo located in the province of Guanacaste Costa Rica. This zone of Costa Rica belongs to an area of the most arid country affected by a pronounced dry season lasting one third of the year. The flora and fauna belong to the dry tropical forest and the region in general suffers from occasional droughts and water scarcity. The house is introverted since its location does not allow for the enjoyment of exterior views more than the groves of a green area contiguous to the property in the middle of a residential development.
Villa Morabeza is a holiday home in the extreme south of Playa Tamarindo located in the province of Guanacaste Costa Rica. This zone of Costa Rica belongs to an area of the most arid country affected by a pronounced dry season lasting one third of the year. The flora and fauna belong to the dry tropical forest and the region in general suffers from occasional droughts and water scarcity. The house is introverted since its location does not allow for the enjoyment of exterior views more than the groves of a green area contiguous to the property in the middle of a residential development.
The challenge (and opportunity) of this project was to design a low-budget home that would adapt bioclimatically to its environment through passive design strategies, incorporation of local materials and an optimal spatial relationship with its surroundings to amplify the perceived size of the 125 m2 construction to give the impression of a much larger dwelling.
The project is characterized by the word “HONESTY”, a concept that was present in all stages of design and construction:
Large terraces capture the wind and waves on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Set amongst idyllic white sand beaches and coconut groves, this low-key beach home was conceived to give its inhabitants not only a visual but also a literal connection to the sand and water where it belongs.
Horizontal roof planes create large indoor-outdoor spaces that integrate seamlessly and diffuse the perception of the home with its surrounding natural environment. Lightness and materiality are used to create a feeling of openness and airiness that permeates through the inhabitants.
Los jobos is a new and quite neighborhood at the south area of playa tamarindo community. This area is located in the ‘green corridor’ that connects tamarindo and langosta estuaries with the forests and mountains that surround tamarindo. This corridor is used by animals to come down from the mountains and have access to the water of the of the estuaries during the dry season. The property that is surround by a beautiful forest and it has a stepped slope next to the access leaving 100% of the property under the street level. Because of this, our client asked us to lift up part of the program trying to reach the views and also share a great connection with the canopies of the trees that surround the property. Social and services areas, the studio and the master bedroom which is the 70% of the program are at the top floor of the house and only one bedroom with the laundry are at the ground level and they both work as the based of the top floor which is cantilevered by 70%. A parabolic roof gives shade to the open social areas/terrace that helps the house to integrate with the exterior. A concrete roof slabs is on top of the interior areas and this will be used as a terrace that has great views.
One of the main goals of our architectural firm is to provide clients with an integrated approach to sustainable building concepts. The VV Residence is no exception as it generates connections with the surrounding landscapes and incorporates passive design strategies to create an optimal, high-performance hygrothermal home.
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