Architecture Design (Company/Studio Name): Flavio Castro Architects
Project Architect(s) (Architect Name): Flavio Castro
Location: Guarujá, Sao Paulo – SP –Brazil
Area (Building size): 440m2
Completion:
Structure: concrete
Slabs: concrete
Walls: masonry
Closings: aluminum, wood and glass
Photographer: Flavio Castro

The exterior of the house is made of concrete paired with stones and woods, giving off a welcoming atmosphere.

The entrance has a stone walkway, and the metal gate leads to the backyard.

The living room sits next to the dining area, and the glass walls showcase the outside view.

The dining area features a glass table next to the staircases.

The dining area is in between the living room and the floating staircase.

The kitchen features a long kitchen island with a counter table.

The house features a floating staircase and a small pond below.

The floating staircases lead to the upper floors.

The house features a large skylight letting the light in during the day.

The view of the fireplace area under the floating staircase.

The house features a wood fireplace and an area rug giving the room a cozy atmosphere.

The master bedroom features nightstands and artwork.

The house features double doors leading to the backyard where the pool is located.

The backyard features a spiral staircase and river rocks before the lawns.

The backyard of the house has a swimming pool and an open dining area.

The covered patio features an open dining area good for outdoor relaxation.

The pool area features a wooden deck and sunlounger for relaxation.

During the night, the backyard is lit with accent lighting giving the house a dramatic effect.

Full view of the backyard of the house with the pool and the terrace.

No frontiers between the connected environments grouped by function are the major feature of the Pernambuco house. The architect drew 4 virtual axes perpendicular to the street to organize the distribution of internal and external environments. Two of them coincide to the right and left side façade and the other two are in the middle creating a large space for access that crosses the entire project.

This central space separates the house into 02 other spaces. On the left is the garage and services. The kitchen opens into the social space so the visitors can participate in the preparation of meals (dissolution of the frontiers between spaces). There is a helical metal stair in the back area allowing direct access to the terrace upstairs.

In the right side there are the rooms and the freestanding metal ladder that leads to the upper floor. The same alignment dictates the distribution of external spaces such as the swimming pool and sauna that follow the axes perpendicular to the public street and form the pavilion at the backyard

Upstairs, the four suites follow the same logic of the first floor with a central hall of distribution. On the roof, the glass provides overhead lighting for the entire up floor and main floor. This opening marks the central axis as an exception. While the transparency of glass lets in sunlight, two openings next to the roof eliminates the hot air that rises through its lower density (sustainability).

The water surface under de interior stair returns to the air humidity in days of intense heat in the city of Brazil, a tropical country, and the roof garden of the pavilion keeps a low temperature of its flat roof.

Modulation and symmetry facilitated the construction of the house. With standardized measures, uniformed heights of the beams and dimensions of the pillars were be used. The same construction technique was adopted in the whole building.