The design of this house was seen as an opportunity to elaborate on the interest to understand the access to quality dwelling space of Costa Rican middle class. People in this large, educated and malleable segment of our society often have difficulty in finding financing for their residential projects, while their preferences are being increasingly influenced by a real-estate industry that promotes simplified solutions that are largely unobtainable. In this scenario a young couple faced with the decision to buy an apartment in the area close to their work, that would have cost them twice as much for a third of the size of this house, were drawn towards the solution of living a little further away and being linked to the smaller town of La Garita. This location put in relevance the building traditions of this old town and the strong relationship with its rural and natural borders. In this sense, the house is considered an extension of the shade of the trees that border the ravine, which also defines the limit of the terrain. Stones, reeds and a small bridge are used as well, associated with the bodies of water of the location. Ornamental clay bricks that appear in traditional houses and walls are used, in order to make a neutral facade linked to the local infrastructure. This wall is used to mitigate the elongated orientation to the east (in a village with high temperatures) a non-negotiable condition because of the geometry of the terrain. The wall is also separated from the house to create a mattress of air and water in between (fed by rainwater collectors).
The house intends to be generous by providing more quality space with less materials, which are also economic, locally sourced and simply assembled according to vernacular building traditions.
Material Used:
1. Facade cladding- Bamboo canes, Hermanos Seas. Ceramic bricks, LadrilleraAguaCaliente
2. Flooring- Polished concrete, done on site.
3. Doors- Plywood doors, made on site.
4. Windows- Material type, Product, Brand
5. Roofing- Corrugated galvanized steel, Metalco
6. Interior lighting- LED lighting, several types of fixtures, Tecnolite
7. Ceiling- Pine plywood sheets, Amatek, Amanco
