Mexico City home draws on its city's rich midcentury modern legacy
Ventana House in Mexico City is the home and workspace of architect José Juan Rivera Rio of JJRR/Arquitectura

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.
In the Lomas de Chapultepec neighbourhood of Mexico City, a low, linear volume lies nestled in the leafy greenery. This is Ventana House, the Mexico City home of local architect José Juan Rivera Rio, who crafted the elegant residence as a live/work space for himself and his boutique practice JJRR/Arquitectura. Ventana House, as the project was called in a nod to its street name, was inspired by Mexico City's architectural history and in particular its rich 1950s modernist architecture legacy – which Rivera Rio blended here with 21st-century style and sensibility.
The architect placed his new-build house in the middle of its generous plot – a space measuring roughly 800 sq m. This way, he was able to ensure all four sides can look out to nature and are open to allow for air circulation and views. At the same time, inspiration was drawn ‘from the beginnings of modernism, Bauhaus and brutalism, as well as midcentury modern movements. And for this house in particular, the modern styles of some residential parts of Mexico City, but without losing sight of the basic guidelines of modernism.'
A fairly restrained material palette, including brick, volcanic stone and concrete, as well as steel for the window frames, creates a durable and low-maintenance composition, but also gives the home its hardwearing and utilitarian feel. This is mixed with midcentury references throughout. Inside, furniture by designers such as Don Shoemaker, Frank Kyle, Johannes Andersen, Peter Løvig Nielsen, and Serge Mouille further highlight the project's 20th-century influences.
The property is used as both the home of the architect and his four-strong family, and a workspace, where Rivera Rio's studio can meet and produce its striking Mexican architecture offerings such as 2019's Casa Vertientes. Three double bedrooms and ample open-plan living space complement the generous home study area – all arranged across two levels, one above ground, and one delicately semi-sunken into the earth.
‘The project's biggest challenge was adapting the architecture and the residential way of life of the 1950s, as seen in examples found in Mexico City, to the present, while of course always keeping in mind the key principles of modernist architecture,' Rivera Rio explains.
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).
-
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
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
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
By Jack Moss Published
-
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
By Simon Mills Published
-
Nico Sayulita offers an immersive architectural experience of the Mexican Pacific Coast
Nico Sayulita, designed by architecture studio Palma and developer Hybrid, is a new, design-led hospitality experience on the Mexican Pacific Coast
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Casa Enso II is in harmony with its Mexican context
Casa Enso II by HW Studio Architects is a new residence in tune with Mexico’s historic Guanajuato region
By Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah Published
-
Mexico City equestrian clubhouse makes stunning impression on the landscape
Studio RC’s steel and concrete stables and equestrian clubhouse are set within a wooded valley, offering space and views for sports and equine care
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Cabo Sports Complex is anchored to its site through volume and material
Cabo Sports Complex by Taller Hector Barroso in Baja California is the new home for the Mexican Tennis Open
By Ellie Stathaki 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
-
Casa Alferez is a fortress-like holiday home with impossibly lofty interiors
Soaring high in the Mexican forest, Casa Alferez, a fortress-like holiday home by Ludwig Godefroy, hides and protects impossibly lofty interiors
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Considerate Mexico City housing emerges from heritage transformation by Pedro y Juana
Mexico city housing T42 is born out of the transformation of a historical home by architecture studio Pedro y Juana
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
A minimalist Mexican home has rocky roots
Echegaray, a minimalist Mexican home by Pérez Palacios Arquitectos Asociados, draws on its rocky site, which peeps out from its lower levels
By Ellie Stathaki Published