Creating a home that fosters a close relationship with nature; making the most of the region's natural light; and producing a compact house that causes minimal intrusion on the surrounding natural landscape were all key drivers in the design development of Casa El Aguacate, a Mexican retreat outside Monterrey by the locally based studio Práctica Arquitectura. The single-level, minimalist architecture of this pink house was composed around a series of interconnected open-air patios, a flowing, airy interior, natural light and smart circulation plans.
The project was a private commission for a holiday home for a young family of four – a couple and their toddlers. ‘El Aguacate seeks to be the interface between its inhabitants and the place in which it is deployed; a welcoming space for rest and coexistence,’ the architecture team explains. A geometric, almost minimalist approach helps instil clarity in the studio's vision and a neutral background for life to unfold inside the home.
The generous living space with its 4.5m-high conical skylight becomes the heart of the relatively compact – at 165 sq m – home. The opening helps filter light down and throughout the interior all day, aided by the large windows that wrap the house. The three patios and a main, paved and sheltered terrace provide direct contact with the outdoors.
A textured treatment in the building’s distinctive pink-ish render means the volume’s clean geometries feel warm and tactile – instead of harsh and clinical. 'The sobriety and solidity of the exterior together with the landscape design in apparent stone accentuate the stony and monolithic appearance of the house, creating a dialogue through colour and texture with the intense green of the garden and the character of the site,' the team expands.
Treating this weekend, softly pink house as an exercise in simplicity, Práctica Arquitectura was keen to strip back the clutter and design a structure that is fit for purpose but features ‘only what is necessary’. The architects’ design, they stress, is not about scale or budget, but the perfect execution of an idea for a simple, both practical and uplifting, everyday space.
INFORMATION
-
Ronan Bouroullec book merges art, design and everyday life‘Ronan Bouroullec: Day After Day’, from Phaidon, is a visual inventory of the French designer’s work, artistic output and daily inspiration
-
Inside the gleaming new Comme des Garçons store in Paris
Comme des Garçons reveals a four-storey new retail space in Paris, housing lines previously only available in Japan, as well as exclusive reissues of Rei Kawakubo’s collectible furniture
-
Eva Jospin and Ruinart put the fizz in Frieze London 2023
Champagne house Ruinart brings artist Eva Jospin’s vision of its terroir to Frieze London 2023, and celebrates with a limited edition Jeroboam of Ruinart Blanc de Blancs
-
The finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond
For some of the world's finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond, scroll below. Can’t get enough of brutalism? Neither can we.
-
Modernist architecture: inspiration from across the globe
Modernist architecture has had a tremendous influence on today’s built environment, making these midcentury marvels some of the most closely studied 20th-century buildings; check back soon for new additions to our list
-
Minimalist architecture: homes that inspire calm
These examples of minimalist architecture place life in the foreground – clutter is demoted; joy promoted
-
The iconic British house: key examples explored
New book ‘The Iconic British House’ by Dominic Bradbury explores the country’s best residential examples since 1900
-
Loyle Carner’s Reading Festival 2023 stage presents spatial storytelling at its finest
We talk to Loyle Carner and The Unlimited Dreams Company (UDC) about the musical artist’s stage set design for Reading Festival 2023
-
The Leaf is a feat of engineering and an ode to the Canadian Prairies
The Leaf in Winnipeg, Canada, is the first interactive horticultural attraction of its kind: a garden and greenhouse complex promoting a better understanding of how people can connect with plants
-
Behind the V&A East Museum’s pleated façade
Behind the new V&A East Museum’s intricate façade is a space for the imagination to unfold
-
Casa Monoculo offers a take on treetop living in Brazil
Casa Monoculo by architect Alan Chu is a house raised above the treetops in Alto Paraiso City, Brazil
