Located in Ribeirão Preto, in the state of São Paulo, Q House, designed by Biselli Katchborian, was conceived around a residential program comprising four bedroom suites, living and dining areas, kitchen, private family spaces, and support facilities including a garage, storage room, and an outdoor leisure area with a barbecue, wood-fired oven, linear swimming pool, and garden.
The design responds to both the site's characteristics—deeper than it is wide—and its solar orientation. The building footprint frees one side of the lot for the garden and pool, taking advantage of the most favorable sunlight conditions. The site's topography informed the organization of the program, with a basement accommodating the garage and technical areas, while the house itself unfolds across two levels, placing the social spaces on the ground floor and the private quarters on the upper level.
The building's massing is defined by clean, precise volumes and the use of cantilevers and long-span structural solutions. The upper floor projects over the garage, supported by a beam engineered to span a considerable distance, concentrating the structural loads at a single point within the design. This solution required a dedicated structural development and became a defining architectural feature of the residence.
Concrete and timber are the project's primary materials, each used in its natural expression. Concrete shapes the structural system and enclosure planes, while timber appears in cladding and shading elements, including sliding louvered screens. Large glazed surfaces, framed with aluminum window systems, strengthen the relationship between indoor and outdoor spaces while maximizing the entry of natural light.
The residence's thermal performance is supported by a site strategy that optimizes controlled solar exposure, together with the protection of openings through louvers and brise-soleils, while the glazed surfaces are carefully dimensioned according to solar orientation. The design is further complemented by a rooftop solar energy system that helps meet the home's energy demands in a region characterized by high temperatures.
