Located on the grounds of a larger holiday home in the seaside community of Quintay on the Chilean coast, this pavilion was designed as a dedicated guesthouse by Santiago based architecture studio Tironi Bartlau.
A clean, minimalist box volume of some 74 sq m, the project is informed in its formal development and dimensions by the neighbouring main house as well as the trees and topography of the site. ‘We set out not to simply build a new building in the vacant space, but to renovate the entire site, creating a series of gardens in between the two houses,' explain Tironi and Bartlau.
The two story building has a relatively small footprint and extends upwards, with the main living spaces placed on the top floor, and more private and auxiliary areas contained below. This way, the communal and entertainment areas on the piano nobile are afforded long views towards the surrounding nature and the ocean beyond. Tall ceilings here enhance the overall sense of space, while wood paneling creates warmth and adds to the texture palette inside.
Fully glazed walls with invisible corners help the gaze wander, say the architects, ‘so that our eyes observe the exterior view of being surrounded by trees, the distant horizon of the sea and perhaps make us doubt that we are inside.'
The guesthouse's visible metallic frame defines its aesthetic. ‘The exposed skeleton-like structure, based on a continuous 10x20 cm section of steel beams and columns, is placed outside the enclosure layer, thus reinforcing the idea of ‘incompleteness' and creating an ambiguity for the borderline between inside and outside,' explains the design team.
Headed by Tomas Tironi and Christian Bartlau, the young studio was established in Chile's capital less than a decade ago as the joint operation of the dynamic architects, who have also collaborated with some of the country's most established offices, like Cecilia Puga and Max Nunez, and also teach. Their combined portfolio includes a wealth of residential commissions, from single family houses to larger residential work and interiors.
INFORMATION
-
Remembering Robert A.M. Stern, an architect who discovered possibility in the pastIt's easy to dismiss the late architect as a traditionalist. But Stern was, in fact, a design rebel whose buildings were as distinctly grand and buttoned-up as his chalk-striped suits
-
Didn't make it to Alcova Miami this year? These are our 10 favourite thingsAt the third US edition of the exhibition, designers reinterpreted ancient traditions, artfully refracted light and encouraged sexual exploration
-
Inside the Melbourne exhibition which puts fashion renegades Rei Kawakubo and Vivienne Westwood in conversation‘Westwood Kawakubo’ at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne draws on the designers’ shared ‘spirit of rebellion’, curators Katie Somerville and Danielle Whitfield tell Wallpaper*
-
A wooden lakeside cabin in southern Chile offers a new twist on the traditional barnClad in local Coigüe timber, this lakeside cabin by Tomás Tironi and Lezaeta Lavanchy on Lake Ranco, titled Casa Puerto Nuevo, adds contemporary flair to the local vernacular
-
Remembering Alexandros Tombazis (1939-2024), and the Metabolist architecture of this 1970s eco-pioneerBack in September 2010 (W*138), we explored the legacy and history of Greek architect Alexandros Tombazis, who this month celebrates his 80th birthday.
-
Sun-drenched Los Angeles houses: modernism to minimalismFrom modernist residences to riveting renovations and new-build contemporary homes, we tour some of the finest Los Angeles houses under the Californian sun
-
House in the Trees offers a bird's eye view of the Chilean forestHouse in the Trees by Max Núñez and Stefano Rolla is an angular Chilean cabin in woods, touching the ground lightly
-
This Chilean beach house comprises a series of pavilions set beneath a wooden roofWYND Architects has completed a Chilean beach house – a multigenerational family retreat, raised up above a site overlooking the Pacific Ocean
-
Extraordinary escapes: where would you like to be?Peruse and lose yourself in these extraordinary escapes; there's nothing better to get the creative juices flowing than a healthy dose of daydreaming
-
A modern barnhouse makes a faceted form on an exposed site in Southern ChileEstudio Diagonal’s barnhouse project, Ridge House, is a stripped back private home that uses everyday materials and simple geometry to maximise interior space
-
Year in review: top 10 houses of 2022, selected by Wallpaper* architecture editor Ellie StathakiWallpaper’s Ellie Stathaki reveals her top 10 houses of 2022 – from modernist reinventions to urban extensions and idyllic retreats
