Santa Maria is a housing
development located in a historic protected site in the heart of Valle de
Bravo, a small colonial city dating from 1530, which is 2 hours away from
Mexico City. This historic town has a strong physical context and is found in
the outskirts of a man-made lake. Our site is located a hundred yards from the
church of Santa Maria Ahuacatlan, a colonial church that dates back to the XVI
century.
The project was conceived as a
weekend retreat from Mexico City´s busy lifestyle and it includes 9 town houses
and some amenities that provide an almost hotel-like experience. The overall
footage of the project is 2,433.00 sq. mts. and each of the town houses range
between 168.00 and 251.00 sq. mts.
When confronted with such a
beautiful and restricted context, we could do nothing but respect it, trying to
bring the most out of it by handling the physical aspects of the project with
care. Most of this aspects were given to us as regulations by the local authority:
the materials involved, the heights, the relationship with other buildings, the
general layout, sizes and materials of doors, windows, etc.
From the very early stages of
design, we tried to make a strong connection with the site by responding to its
topography, to the existing vegetation, to the views of the lake, to our
neighboring buildings, to the width of the streets, etc. Also we tried to make
a more conceptual connection by incorporating the flavor of the rich natural
and rural landscape surrounding Valle de Bravo. That´s why we decided to
incorporate long trenches all along the project and fill them with natural
river stones and vegetation.
We sought out for the spirit
and aspirations of the place, trying to bring them to their next stage of evolution,
where the new structure respectfully talks about the past, is firmly rooted in
the present and gives a sense of direction for the future. Maybe that´s why
this project constantly tries to be physically anchored to the ground and at
the same time tries to float and fly away in the sky.
The main spatial configuration
of the project consists on placing volumes along the two streets that confine
the site (which is a local regulation), and by placing the houses in an L
shape. By this, we could take advantage of the orientation and the views, and
at the same time we were able to generate a pool area (in the sense of a main
patio), just like in the traditional houses found in downtown Valle de Bravo.
The general layout of the
project includes two main levels:
The lower one includes the
entrance, parking space, security guard room, garbage room, a small service
cafeteria, concierge room, accounting room, 36 small cellars, laundry, service
bathrooms and maintenance rooms.
The upper level includes a
self contained corridor (in L shape) that runs all along the houses. The
purpose of this corridor is to become a buffer between the 9 houses and the
pool area. The pool area works both as an open and a contained space, having a
sense of privacy towards the houses, but opening up to the surrounding
landscape. This area includes a wooden deck, a jacuzzi, two pools, a space for
making fires and a small garden. At the very end of the self contained
corridor, there is a small patio that brings light and calm to a yoga studio
and a massage room.
We were careful so that every
house could enjoy privacy and at the same time could open itself up to the
beautiful surroundings. All bedrooms have a considerable lower height than the
living rooms, that is because it is more efficient to heat such spaces and
because we wanted to bring a sense of warmth, protection and coziness from the
cold and wet outdoor environment.
The lower floor of each house
(except house number 5), includes a small lobby, 3 bedrooms and two
bathrooms.The upper floor of each house takes advantage of the height
regulation, bringing up an expansive space that offers great views towards the
lake and the surroundings. On this floor there is an open kitchen, living room,
a private terrace, a small bathroom and a laundry closet.
The starting point for
choosing the materials came from a regulation that considers that all the
exterior walls should have a white plaster finish. Having such a neutral and
beautiful background, we decided to combine it with two more materials: natural
stone and solid wood. So all around the project (on the exterior areas and on
the interior ones), there is white plaster, red burn plaster (bathrooms), solid
wood and natural grey stone. It was really important for us that such materials
were completely natural, because we wanted to infuse a natural, non urban
experience.
Another important aspect of
the project were the windows and doors. From the very early stages of design,
we were willing to use solid surfaces of wood on the facades. So for example,
the bedroom windows on the first floor, have movable solid panels of wood in
the inside. These are used as blinds during the day and as temperature
insulators at night. This kind of solution was commonly used long time ago in
colonial houses.
All along the design process
we tried to imbue the project with a sense of calmness, neutrality, openness,
privacy and contact with the surrounding landscape and cityscape. Living in a
city like Mexico City makes many people feel the urge to reconnect with nature,
history and with themselves. We really hope that with this project we can help
some people achieve that goal.