Mexican Architecture with minimalist tendencies

Project: Ar. Servando Bojórquez

Construction: Bojórquez Arquitectos

Photography: Gonzalo Bojórquez

The zapopan municipality, inside the metropolitan zone of Guadalajara, is a site that by its nature turns out to be historical in an architectural level, specially its downtown, is because of this that the construction has an markedly Mexican and regionalist style, in order to adapt to its enviroment, give in it that modern touch necessary in the contemporany architecture. Being an area near the center of the municipality it turns out to have around it different type of constructions, mainly houses, some of them with historical value, very representative of the architecture in Guadalajara, in addition to a scarce circulation of vehicles due to the entire cobbled area, very much in the style of rural populations. Is this sensation, almost like in a little town, what gave the need to create an intimate architecture that reflects modernism from the exterior, but with a feeling of Mexican pride given in the interior.

In the terrain, share by two families, its was necessary to project two homes that share the same aestethic elements, but that they would be independent of each other. Built with steel beams and vaults and brick walls of the region. The general solution consists of locating both houses in the same property, but with the enough distance from each other togive the sensation of individuality and not as a multi-family site. The first housing is located in the front of the land and the other in the bottom of it, both spaces sharing exterior areas like an very wide garden between one and the other and an conection walk way full of vegetation. For all this at the level of volumetry and color both houses share a conceptual similarity.

In general terms the volumetry presents modern details in both houses, however por personal reasons of each family ther first residence shows most daring elements, and the second one, more regionals, sharing both of them juxtaposed volumes and elements of color with certain contrast in yellow and lavender colors, as a tribute to Mexican architecture. Is this way that the work is perceive in two manners, one from the exterior in which the volume play is clear with the blacksmith in the marquee of steel and the color used. Behind the marquee the main façade is located causing a visual freshness and the sensation a sense of incognito to know what is behind the lattice, on the other hand, the sensation once inside changes, to the point of feeling a light atmosphere, full of vegetation and regional forms. Thus, from the outside, the game of heights is essential in the aesthetic management of residences.

In order, the first residence once you enter present, as already said, a volumetry more daring and contemporany of minimalist tendencies, this turns out to be important especially because the main entrance of the house is trough out the lateral walkway full of vegetation, this aestethic get reflected in the inside of the house, where once indise the habitant is received by a double height with an stair with footprints and superelevations of wood that delimit the ample space that is perceived bright thanks to the color white that all the house have, and the entrance of the light thanks to the large windows in the stairwell area.

There are 3 elements that unite the houses in the terrain, the walkway that comunicate the entrance of the first house and end up in the entrance of the second house, the vegetation in the lateral walls, and an intermediate garden that both houses share and does the noise filter functions and a recreation area for both families. Is in the second home where the minimalist sensation gets reduce and the mexican and regional aestethic gets increase.

The entrance of the second residence turns out diferent of the first one, this is because there is a the visual auction of the wood staple of the staircase, behind a lobby in the entrance with an electric piano, is the staircase the element in wich the house works. This way the house is develops from left to right. The lavender and yellow colors hare present here as well as details in smithy, niches and other elements, in addition, the light bathes the residence through a large and daring dome with wooden pergolate on the main staircase. And as it was reflected in the exterior the interior also have a more mexican influnce in this second home, and with furniture more rustic, but elegant. This is how in the same land they were built and designed at the same time this 2 homes, so we handled them as a single work divided into two.