This minimalist urban retreat is Swiss Ambassador's Residence in Mexico City
Lausanne-based architects Fruehauf, Henry & Viladoms (FHV) and Mexico City studio Blancasmoran have redesigned the Swiss Ambassador’s Residence in Mexico City into a minimalist urban retreat

Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Thank you for signing up to Wallpaper. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Located on a tree-lined street in the Lomas de Chapultepec neighbourhood of Mexico City, this striking, monolithic concrete design is the Swiss Ambassador's Residence in Mexico. The majestic – if somewhat enigmatic – volume has recently been renovated and redesigned by Lausanne-based architects Fruehauf, Henry & Viladoms (FHV) and Mexico City studio Blancasmoran. The urban retreat's minimalist architecture takes its cues from the topography and residential identity of the site and the wider area.
Placed in a relatively narrow, elongated plot, the residence’s reworked shape is defined by the neighbouring structures as well as the footprint of the existing home on site, which the team respected. The new house is located on a plinth and crafted within thick concrete walls, creating a physical and acoustic distance from the street – as the architects treated the residence as a calm domestic retreat, away from the noise of the street.
‘This sense of calm is reinforced by the omnipresence of the plant element,' say the architecture team, pointing towards the gardens, planted courtyards and indoor greenery everywhere. ‘On the avenue side, the wall becomes a façade. A horizontal folding gives it an austere, intriguing and sophisticated presence.'
Inside, concrete meets light grey terrazzo floors in a graceful, uncluttered interior. Black granite blocks contain service spaces, visually separated from the main living spaces' concrete slabs. Large eucalyptus-wood swing doors separate different spaces. The harder, minimalist surfaces are juxtaposed by greenery everywhere, inside and out, balancing nature and architecture.
Large glazed surfaces visually connect the home with its surroundings, while at the rear, cascading terraces lead residents out of the house and through the gently sloped urban gardens towards the ravine at the bottom of the site. ‘The topography is a geographical element that strongly defines the site. The area's ravines create wooded natural corridors,’ say the architects, who cleverly juxtaposed the softness of this landscape with a strong, clearly defined volume in this renovation project.
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture Editor at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018) and Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020).
-
Brooklyn furniture studio Stillmade unveils its first collaborative design series
Stillmade brings to life the designs of four New Yorkers – Pat Kim, Danny Kaplan, Michele Quan and Mignogna Studio
By Pei-Ru Keh Published
-
Toyota and Jun Takahashi create a limited edition Aygo X
Toyota Aygo X Undercover edition is a city car spliced with a high-end streetwear brand
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Daniel Arsham debuts new work in Paris and New York
Daniel Arsham and Perrotin mark 20 years of collaboration with New York and Paris exhibitions
By Hannah Silver Published
-
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
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Year in review: top 10 houses of 2022, selected by Wallpaper* architecture editor Ellie Stathaki
Wallpaper’s Ellie Stathaki reveals her top 10 houses of 2022 – from modernist reinventions to urban extensions and idyllic retreats
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Roz Barr’s terrace house extension is a minimalist reimagining
Terrace house extension by Roz Barr Architects transforms Victorian London home through pared-down elegance
By Nick Compton Published
-
Tree View House blends warm modernism and nature
North London's Tree View House by Neil Dusheiko Architects draws on Delhi and California living
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Maison de Verre: a dramatic glass house in France by Studio Odile Decq
Maison de Verre in Carantec is a glass box with a difference, housing a calming interior with a science fiction edge
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Modernist Coromandel farmhouse refreshed by Frankie Pappas, Mayat Hart and Thomashoff+Partner
An iconic Coromandel farmhouse is being reimagined by the South African architectural collaborative of Frankie Pappas, Mayat Hart and Thomashoff+Partner
By Nick Compton Last updated
-
East London house extension infuses Victorian home with warm modernism
Blurton Road by London architecture studio Emil Eve is a residential extension project that transforms a modest Clapton house
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Pergola Extension transforms Victorian Melbourne home
Pergola Extension by Krisna Cheung Architects offers a contemporary touch to a Victorian Melbourne property, infusing it with sustainability and generosity of space
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated