PYE House / BAM! arquitectura

Curated by Danae Santibañez

Architects: BAM! arquitectura
Area: 185 m²
Year: 2016
Photographs:Jeremias Thomas
Manufacturers: 1. BAM! arquitectura, 2. Bulla, 3. Ing. Pedro Gea, 4. Perfiles y Servicios, 5. Jengibre

Text description provided by the architects. A PROJECT THAT TRANSFORMS THE WEAKNESSES OF THE LOT INTO STRENGTHS.

The PYE house was built on a very narrow and deep lot in Escobar, in the northern part of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, which has a huge North-orientated diving wall.

The house project responds to the challenge of meeting the expectations of a young couple, taking into account not only the need of a house where they can start their own family but also the distinctive features of the lot.

In the first place, we decided to build towards the diving wall, but keeping a distance from it by creating a patio in the first floor that allows the entrance of natural light from the center of the house towards the rest of its spaces. In the second place, we decided to open it subtly towards the front, the lateral and upwards, and in a more forceful way, towards the rear in order to integrate it in an almost imperceptible way with the gallery and thus with the garden. Always taking into account the premise of blurring the limits between exterior and interior.

In this project, we used the light in an indirect way instead of a direct way, as light is one the main materials of the architecture. The entrance of light to all spaces is achieved mainly through the patio and the South-oriented terraces, creating a unique atmosphere.

The central space created in the core of the house connects spaces both in height and transversely, which enables the integration of the ground floor with the first floor.

The house is organized in two floors. The ground floor is pretty compact, while the first floor has a great space in the core that, on the one hand, connects both floors from this space, and on the other hand, fills the entire house with light from the center. The hall, the sitting room, the dining room, the kitchen and services are located on the ground floor, while the first floor is organized in two areas: one for the couple and another for future children, creating in this way a house that adapts to the changes of the family through time.

Seeking for a ventilated house, integrated with nature, we used ventilation and natural lighting in 100% of spaces through the display of windows that trim and frame each piece of the landscape, intensified by an inner patio located at the upper floor and a great green terrace.

Sustainability is granted mainly by means of the bio-environmental design through an implantation taking into account the orientations, the winds and the sun´s path, natural lighting in all spaces, fresh and cross-ventilation by means of water mirrors, green terrace for insulation of the ground floor and rainwater harvesting for irrigation.