Cube Museum I – Museo Cubo I

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This exercise focuses on transformation and how a cube grid can house a transformative system. The Cube is present with a 3d grid and a series of “bars” composed of 3 cubes 80cms in height. This bars slide and become stairs, benches, exhibition surfaces etc. this bars can slide form 3 sides of the cube to change the space inside.

To test this three-dimensional gizmo, it needs to be inserted and proven with an open and free flowing functional program.  

Thus a museum was chosen to use the gizmo. Several cubic gizmos where arranged in a linear fashion to create a linear path to exhibit the works. The gizmo can be changed so the exhibition space can change depending on which type of exhibition is chosen. The gizmo is open so an enclosure needed to be designed in order to make a semi-dry space.

The resulting design is a museum open space that can change depending on the exhibit. It is a free-flow transformative form and space.

JM Beach House - Casa de Playa JM

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Fast forward to last week. New commission, old happy client. Now it is a beach house in a very small lot (barely 9m x 15m) inside a beach closed community.

The parameters allowed 9mts in height and required a 3m setback on the front and a 50cms side setback. It also forced for 30% of clear area (area without any roof from the 1st floor viewed from the top).

The design approach forced a few things: vistas to the side (the front has a house only 6m apart), and the main social areas on a terrace on an open third floor.

The owner´s program asked for one parking space inside the lot and a minimum of 3 bedrooms. The diagrams show how the modeling allowed for the side vistas and closed the volume to the front allowing for some privacy in the bedrooms (specifically the master bedroom).

IL Narrow Building - Edificio Angosto IL

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Can one design a housing building in a lot barely 7.5m wide? Can it be done?. This was the challenge for this commission.

The father had a lot with an incredible panoramic view towards the sea in the Miraflores District in Lima, Peru, and he wanted to design a building for him and his 03 kids (04 apartments).

The challenge started by trying to make a livable apartment unit within that extremely narrow space. In order to make it, the units had to become duplexes since part of the idea was for the apartments to have 03 bedrooms each.

The massing and form for this design started form a grid that followed the functionality of the apartments to make way for a very dynamic façade. The massing was enhanced by the linearity of 03 structural walls that became the datum for the project.

Sadly the owner finally sold the lot and this design never became built.

Condominium Housing Building - Edificio de Vivienda Condominio

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Playing around with the Lazo shapes and structures, I pursued the idea of using a lazo structure as a base structure of a bigger system... How big? well..as big as you can get in architecture..housing buildings and maybe even high rise housing buildings.

The Lazo structure is used as a structural sustain for the housing units. The housing units are duplexes that are arranged like a Ying-Yang System.