_U House

_Description

Complementary project

Year: 2020

Information:

Architectural design of a single-family residence located in an area far from the urban center of Brasília with rural characteristics, inspired by Guthrie House from Felipe Assadi & Francisca Pulido.

The topography of the area intended for the house has a sharp drop of around 25%, showing the open view towards an extensive area of native vegetation.

The family’s main interest in having a house that was visually and structurally integrated with the landscape was the starting point of the project. The objective was to preserve the unevenness of the land in order to move as little land as possible in order to highlight the view through architecture.

By allowing nature to coauthor the project, it was possible to propose a house without a front facade (in contrast to the neighboring houses that block the view of the landscape in the background).

The access to the house is made by the highest part of the land, where the observer can see only the porches that structure the whole set of slabs and fences. In this way, the upper slab of the house received the function of a lookout and the porches direct the viewer’s gaze towards the landscape in the background.

The house program was divided into two areas: intimate and social.

The intimate area (which concentrates the rooms and bathrooms) was positioned on the northeast side, where the morning sun and the light of day enter through the windows of this facade. The access to the rooms is via a corridor facing the garden created inside the house, protected from the setting sun by brises.

The social area (including living room, dining room, kitchen, pantry and laundry area) was positioned in the southwest part of the house. It’s lighting and ventilation is made by frames that directly connect this entire area to the internal garden.

The architectural design follows the shape of the letter U with the interior part filled by the land, highlighting the existing gap.

This configuration made it possible to create a garden inside the house, bringing vegetation, clarity and ventilation to all rooms.

The roof slab of the house has a green cover which contributes to the internal air conditioning of the rooms and visual integration with the outdoor area.

The floor slab was suspended from the ground in order to highlight the structure, minimize earth movement and prevent the entry of wild animals and insects.