Located in the gated beach community of Playa Misterio, 117km south of Lima, Peru, Longhi Architects built this home for a family to enjoy both the outdoor lifestyle as well as indoor living. The design of this home is a study of twos, with two main structures – one featuring concrete that holds the main living area and the Master Suite upstairs, and one featuring glass that holds the children’s zone. Another study of twos is the two pools – one for swimming and one for ambience. The two buildings are 2.4m apart and are joined by a series of elements and forms that create a building block formation on the site. 3 water conduits that spill water from one to the other connect the two pools.
The upper pool is the swimming zone and a series of outdoor lounge chairs overlook the water surface. The pool is level with the outdoor deck but is also raised up. A series of concrete stairs travels down to a deck that wraps the bottom edge of the pool
That deck then travels down another flight of stairs to the decorative pool below. Here, an outdoor shower is located on a privacy wall.
The lower pool is accessible by a concrete step up and offers a peaceful and private place to enjoy the ambiance.
The deck that is level with the swimming pool is also the ceiling of a games room, complete with viewing window into the pool itself. This area has no other windows but is kept light and bright by the use of white cabinetry and a bold choice of mustard yellow colour blocking on the wall.
The games room is connected to a media area where family can get together to watch a movie. The mustard yellow extends into this space along one wall and two pillows. The seating area in this room is a 3-sided sculptural setting that offers both privacy and comfort.
The natural elements of the site protrude into the media space, creating an interesting organic contrast to the man made hard edges of the seating area. The pink glow behind the seating area is the location of the bar.
The bar is tucked behind the concrete stairwell. A long concrete counter connects the stairwell with the wall of wine by cutting through a gap in the wall and cantilevering into the void below the stairwell. A bright red bar stool and lime cabinetry punctuate the space and a cantilevered concrete bench at the bar repeats the detail of the counter.
below the cantilevered counter, under the stairs is where the homeowner keeps their wine fridge.
The concrete stairs lead up to the main living area of the home contained within the concrete building. Here, the space is furnished with a conversation area comprised of a 3-seater couch and two armchairs with a red accent chair just out of site. Beyond the seating arrangement is the dining area and beyond that is a bold lime green door.
While the seating arrangement is small and intimate, the dining area is large. The table is set to hold 12 people but could easily hold another two chairs at either end. Black and chrome chairs surround a concrete table with black top for a neutral and more subdued colour scheme then the bold pops of red in the lounging area.
The Master Suite is up another flight of stairs. Here the décor is kept simple allowing the view to be the centre of attention. Simple yellow bedding and lime green cabinetry offer a softer colour palette then the other areas of the home and the concrete shelving that wraps the chimney flu from the fireplace below create the architectural detail. The large floor to ceiling windows with the view overlooking the Pacific Ocean is the piece de la resistance.
An outdoor deck offers a great place to relax and enjoy the ocean views.
The concrete building that houses the living spaces and Master suite is on the back of the site, while the glass building that encloses the children’s zones is in the front. The glass building cantilevers out to create a covered parking zone below.
The two buildings are connected by a central stairwell that is hidden behind more glass and wood siding. A stone wall wraps the home from front to back.
Concrete sections cantilever out from the glass building, creating interesting shadows as the sun’s rays pass through the circular cut outs.
While one side of the home is covered with windows, the other is almost window-less.
The stairwell that joins the two buildings is a work of art.
The added detail of a bench tucked into the landing areas of the stairs is both functional and sculptural.
The wood ceiling to the stairwell adds another dimension of interest.
The balustrade is a long continuous run of cables that present an image of harp strings.
The cables go straight up to the ceiling.
The mustard tones of the lower level balance the wood tones of the ceiling.
Longhi Architects
