” The order is the sign of the existence and not its cause. If you impose life establish the order, if you impose the order you establish death” - Citadel Antoine De Saint-Exupery
The house is located on the Lo Curro hill, in the eastern sector of Santiago. A gentle and elongated slope forms part of the terrain covered by a eucalyptus forest, planted 30 years ago, with an irrigation channel cutting through it. The house faces north, and has a frontal view of the south side of the hill with its greenery. Furthermore, it has a side view of the eastern part of the city and the Andes Mountains. The best of the central zone of Chile is concentrated in this place. In addition, it is minutes away from the motorways, connecting to all places.
The commission came about through conversation with the client on the formal and programmatic rigidity of living in the city and the freedom offered by houses not in it- this freedom of movement they did not want to lose. They also wanted “a modern but welcoming house”, understood as an observation on contemporary architecture- boxes placed on the land that convert the dwellers into spectators of nature.
Organized around a central glass corridor, the proposal was to create an extended house on the land that would invite its dwellers to tour and enjoy it, an idea which was extended to articulate the house with the landscape design. Hence, the program is distributed liberally along the entire length, from an exterior painting studio passing through the more public areas to bedrooms. The enclosures make use of the slope to create a hierarchical spatial arrangement according to type.In order to create a welcoming house, the materials employed leaned towards the use of those of natural origin and textures, such as stone walls and wooden floors. The gently inclined roof covered with slate shingles has its structure on laminated Coihue (native tree of Chile) beams. The purlins are left in plain view to add greater complexity and rhythm to the ceiling.
In order to blur the lines between the interior and exterior, the larger windows were fitted into the floor ante overhead beams, and only the sliding windows and the doors have frames. The stone walls of the garden terraces extend to the interior to reinforce spatial continuity. The large window in the hall can be opened completely, integrating the terrace and the pool with the interior of the house or vice versa.
Finally, the existing irrigation channel was incorporated into the house and the landscape design; with the idea of creating tiered water pools that follow the walkway, reflecting the surroundings, providing sound and humidity to the environment. The channel continues until it reaches the 18 meter long pool, which looks like yet another pond in the system.
