The Chipicas Town Houses are four independent houses inside a private garden in downtown Valle de Bravo, Mexico. Each house is 6m. x 6m. x 9m. Two sides of the square design were thought out for the general services, like kitchen, laundry room, bathrooms, stairs; all of these within two walls with floor to ceiling windows for natural light and ventilation. These two sides of the façade are covered with a wooden lattice skin made out of recycled railway sleepers. These two walls are semi-closed to gain a sense of privacy and independence from the other houses.
The other two sides of the square design, cover the more private and public spaces of the house, they are made of steel structures covered with glass. This sides, completely see-through, bring a direct relationship between the interior of the house and the amazing gardens. They are pointing south so the sunlight can bathe it throughout the year.
The whole of the structure mixes opposites styles that engage in a sort of dialogue between the work, service, sleeping and living spaces. The main access to the house was designed in diagonal so it portrays larger space and surprise. The foyer and loft at the entrance of the house is where the “public” space of the building is, dinning room, living room and the studio or tv room (loft). These “public spaces” are brought towards the gardens with the double height windows that open all the way through.
On the third level we find the two bedrooms, each one with its own bathroom and balcony. The stairs continue to go upwards to the roof garden where one discovers the amazing view of the Valle de Bravo Lake. The vertical design was used to salvage most of the vegetation, as well as, a solution to the small footprint. Our philosophy is simple and logical design, architecture that is not pretentious, that is decisive in its use of local materials; timeless and transcendent.
We believe in constant communication with the environment, with the setting, with the pre-existing, as an honest dialogue that entails in situ awareness. The architectural outcome has to reflect this principle in every aspect: structurally, in function and form, and with its materials. In this case, we think that Chipicas beauty lies in its simplicity and in its communication with the enviroment.
