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Juan Alberto Andrade adds workspace to multifamily housing in Ecuador
CategoriesArchitecture

Juan Alberto Andrade adds workspace to multifamily housing in Ecuador

By Zarkon Group,

Ecuadorian architect Juan Alberto Andrade has completed an extension to a multifamily housing complex with rammed earth walls in Guayaquil.

Known as El Retiro, the nine-square metre (97-square foot) addition doubles the common space of a 305-square metre (3,282-square foot) residential complex, protruding into the front setback along the street and blurring the line between the private housing and urban realm.

El Retiro residential extensionEl Retiro residential extension
El Retiro is a residential extension to an Ecuadorian home

Following Mexica architect Lucía Martín López’s idea of “the growing house,” Juan Alberto Andrade utilised a strategy for adapting housing López calls “crystallographic growth”: intervening within the limits of the property and following the area and height limits of the neighbourhood.

“Architecture is a response to the continuous need for the reinvention of a habitat,” the team told Dezeen. “Housing is an activity, a built process.”

Rammed earth residential extensionRammed earth residential extension
Rammed earth clads the external walls

Completed in 2022, the simple square addition is composed of a load-bearing, 30-centimetre-thick rammed earth wall – set on top of a limestone rock base – and bahareque masonry, which is a combination of a bamboo frame and clay plaster.

Despite being a different colour than the existing structure, the shape and materiality of the addition works to blend it with the house and the neighbourhood, as does the leafy landscaping along the street.

Communal workspaceCommunal workspace
Juan Alberto Andrade added a workspace to the house

A lightweight pine roof structure slopes from the existing exterior wall to the edge of the addition and is topped by a green metal roof.

Inside, the resin floor serves as a smooth contrast to the raw wooden ceiling and built-in millwork.

Resin flooringResin flooring
Resin floors serve as a smooth contrast to the raw wooden ceiling

A sliding iron door opens to the compact interior, which houses a social space, library, and storage along the street and steps up to a common workspace within the existing floor plan.

A freestanding metal core was inserted into the centre of the plan, joining the addition to the existing room with a kitchenette and bathroom.

Tree within the centre of the extension planTree within the centre of the extension plan
A planted atrium allows a tree to rise in the centre of the plan

A small planted atrium allows a 25-year-old tree to rise in the centre of the plan and light to filter into the building.

A square wooden window – protected by sliding metal shutters – looks across the street to a community park. The pivoting window frame can be opened and the deep structural wall becomes a secondary desk space.

“El Retiro is a project of extension and attachment from an independent body to a multifamily housing, that serves and transforms preexistence into a productive habitat,” the team said.

It was an opportunity to “build specific, viable and productive solutions that attend the progressive growth of housing, and to take advantage of the residual spaces generated by Ecuador’s policies”.

Window with sliding metal shuttersWindow with sliding metal shutters
A square wooden window is protected by sliding metal shutters

Maximizing small spaces is a pillar of Andrade’s practice. He previously designed a flexible installation for a micro apartment in Quito and converted a 1993 Chevy van into a plywood “house-on-wheels” with María José Váscones.

The photography is by JAG Studio.

Project credits:

Architect: Juan Alberto Andrade
Team: Cuqui Rodríguez, María José Váscones, Melissa Toasa, Victoria Peralta, Duda Rodriguez
Suppliers: Baldosas del Ecuador, Acesco, Megakywi

Reference

Santiago Viale and Juan Manuel Juarez use screens for Córdoba offices
CategoriesArchitecture

Santiago Viale and Juan Manuel Juarez use screens for Córdoba offices

By Zarkon Group,

Local architects Santiago Viale and Juan Manuel Juarez have wrapped the offices of an animal feed plant in Córdoba with a perforated metal screen.

The 18,040 square foot (1,676 square metre) administrative building is part of a larger 199,000 square foot (18,460 square metre) industrial complex for Biofarma, which produces feed for animals including poultry, swine and cattle.

A long industrial buildingA long industrial building
Local architects Santiago Viale and Juan Manuel Juarez have wrapped an office building in a metal screen in Córdoba

Santiago Viale and Juan Manuel Juarez organized offices, meeting rooms, printing areas and lounge areas across two rectangular floors, punctuated by two internal courtyards at the centre.

The courtyards, along with wood-clad staircases at either end of the building, create collaborative and interactive spaces for employees across the two levels, according to the team.

The front doors on a facade of an industrial buildingThe front doors on a facade of an industrial building
The building is part of an industrial complex that produces animal feed

The office and meeting spaces were distributed along the internal perimeter, with one side abutting floor-to-ceiling windows that span the exterior and the other, a central passageway.

Glass partitions enclose several office spaces, while others were left open.

A building wrapped in a metal skinA building wrapped in a metal skin
A perforated metal skin wrapped around the exterior provides sun protection

“The company managers’ offices are distributed around a double-height space that connects with a hierarchized entrance on the ground floor, reinforcing the sense of institutional identity,” said the team.

Visitors enter the building’s lobby through a concrete vestibule that extends out from underneath a metal screen enclosing the exterior.

Wooden staircase in a lobbyWooden staircase in a lobby
Two internal courtyards and staircases create interactive spaces for employees

A small auditorium sits next to the lobby, clad in wooden panelling with integrated lighting running through its ceiling and walls. Large windows extend along its side.

Lounge areas and a coffee break space provide additional gathering spaces on the second floor, while a dining area opens onto a roof terrace.

Couches and chairs in the lobby of an animal feed buildingCouches and chairs in the lobby of an animal feed building
The offices line the internal perimeter

Reinforced concrete was used for the building’s structure, which was then wrapped in pre-painted grey galvanized expanded metal sheet skin.

A gap of 27 inches (70 centimetres) sits between the metallic screen and the building’s exterior to create sun protection.

Lobby area with concrete ceilingLobby area with concrete ceiling
Concrete was used for the building’s structure

“This skin plays a significant role in the project, as it forms an intermediate shaded space between the glass closure and the exterior, reducing direct sunlight radiation and, consequently, the building’s energy consumption,” said the team.

Moveable panels were also integrated into the cage-like wrapping, while integrated vertical blinds provide further sun protection for inhabitants.

“It also gives the building the language and institutional character of the company,” said the team.

Two large metal-framed openings were placed on either side of the building, which open onto the outdoor dining area.

A small wood paneled room with theatre seating and large windowsA small wood paneled room with theatre seating and large windows
A small auditorium, dining spaces and terrace were also integrated

A metal “Biofarma” sign was also placed on the exterior.

Other projects recently completed in Córdoba include a black concrete house by AR Arquitectos and two modular cabins by Set Ideas.

The photography is by Gonzalo Viramonte.

Project credits:
Collaborators: Salvador Viale, Tito Maximiliano Gonza, Francisco Gavilán, Nicolás Macasso, Santiago Viale Beviglia, Rocío Cornacchione, Emiliano Pino, Nicolás Borra, Lourdes Bruno, Fiama Ríos, Ricardo Cortesse, Eduardo Storaccio, Sonja Czeranski, Juan Macías
Deployed metal: ETC.
Integral front: Abest
Curtains: Suquía Curtains
Vinyl floor: Julia Sol
Auditorium Seats: Rassegna



Reference

Natura Futura and Juan Carlos Bamba create floating house in Ecuador
CategoriesInterior Design

Natura Futura and Juan Carlos Bamba create floating house in Ecuador

By Zarkon Group,

Architecture studio Natura Futura Arquitectura and architect Juan Carlos Bamba have created a floating house along the Babahoyo River in Ecuador.

Situated within a centuries-old floating village at risk of disappearing, La Balsanera is designed as a model for the preservation and sustainable redevelopment of the river’s depleting community.

Aerial view of the La Balsanera
La Balsanera is a floating house along the Babahoyo River

Following the river’s current closure as a commercial fluvial route, the community saw the number of floating structures decrease from 200 to 25.

La Balsanera is hoped to help revive “the tradition of living on the river”, according to Natura Futura Arquitectura and Bamba.

Terraces wrap around the house located along the Babahoyo River
It has a terrace with a colourful hammock

Built for a family of three, whose livelihoods include selling food to the local community and repairing wooden boats, the 70-square-metre design highlights the river as a vital socio-economic resource.

A two-metre-wide extension to an existing platform provides terraces for them to use as “productive environments”, such as a cafe seating area or anchor point for tourist boats.

Kitchen area of house by Natura Futura and Juan Carlos Bamba
Slatted openings provide ventilation

“La Balsanera explores possible floating solutions that recover local artisan techniques while promoting the active and productive participation of the occupants in vulnerable communities,” Bamba told Dezeen.

The home is built from wooden porticos constructed every two metres to form a gabled truss structure. This is topped by a corrugated roof that shelters the outdoor terraces and a colourful hammock.

A central space hosts a shared living room, dining area and kitchen along with two bedrooms, while two external strips at either end provide a toilet, shower, laundry space and boat workshop.

Slatted openings, known locally as “chazas”, have been made from recycled wood and help naturally ventilate and cool the interior.

View of bedroom spaces in floating house in Ecuador
A bridge made from bamboo and wood connect the home to the mainland

A bridge made from bamboo and planks of wood provides a walkway between the floating home and the mainland.

Meanwhile, shutter doors used throughout the design link the living spaces to the surrounding terraces.

Seating is provided on the terrace of La Balsanera
A seating area is provided on the river-facing terrace

Natura Futura Arquitectura and Bamba are based in Ecuador and Spain respectively.

Other projects completed by Natura Futura Arquitectura include a fitness centre featuring giant shutters and a mirrored viewing platform in the Ecuadorean countryside.

The photography is by Francesco Russo.

Reference