2022
MCHAP
Lagos House
MAPA Architects
Ciudad de la Costa, Uruguay
January 2019
AUTOR PRINCIPAL
Luciano Andrades, MatÃas Carballal, Andrés Gobba, Mauricio López, Silvio Machado
AUTOR CONTRIBUYENTE
Pablo Courreges, AgustÃn Dieste, Diego Morera, Victoria Muniz, Emiliano Lago, Sebastián Lambert, Martina Pedreira, Sandra RodrÃguez, Fabián Sarubbi, Lilian Wang, João Bernardi, Débora Boniatti, Juliana Colombo, Lucas Marques, Helena Utzig.
CLIENTE
Alejandro RodrÃguez
FOTÓGRAFO
Leonardo Finotti
OBJETIVO
Six prefabricated concrete slabs rest on two concrete walls which are also built in the factory. This set of components, simple in their construction, layout and assembly, define the spaces and character of Lagos House. A single 11-meter-width space is formed under these industrial pieces, which take on a new meaning in this domestic context. Within seconds of entering the house, anyone can instantly understand how the house was built (or mounted), and how structural loads run through the few building elements from the roof and down to the ground.
A series of light partitions are strategically assembled to define a bedroom and a service area without interrupting the spatial experience of the house. The frontal patio acts as a buffer between the house and the road while being a sheltered and comfortable outdoor space for windy days or for the winter, thanks to its north orientation.
The house is thus presented as an accurate and neutral infrastructure that enables the user to encounter and enjoy the everyday activities whilst maintaining a direct and continuous relation with the lake.
CONTEXTO
Casa Lagos is located in a 15-by-40-meter lakefront plot in a low-density residential neighborhood. The plot has a strong front-back condition defined by the access road in front and a beautiful lake in the back.
In this context, a middle-aged sommelier imagined his house as a calm and spacious space in direct contact with the nature of the lake, and at the same time as a place to fully enjoy the pleasures of his life: organizing wine tastings, parties and gatherings with family and friends, displaying his collection of cars and motorcycles, and practicing water sports on the lake.
Due to personal requirements, construction times had to be reduced as much as possible to speed up the moving process.
ACTUACIÓN
Lagos House was built to last. First, due to the raw and noble nature of the materials used. Second, because of the neutrality of its spatial and programmatic layout, which enables a complete transformability of use over time, both in the short term and in the long term. These two essential characteristics of Lagos House follow directly from its simple structural conception: six concrete slabs rest in two concrete walls.
In addition, the construction was carried out in a record time of 70 work days, thanks to the advantages of prefabrication that enabled the foundation works and the manufacture of the structural pieces to advance in parallel. The latter were mounted in just one week. Once the structure was assembled, it was possible to advance under cover in the rest of the construction stages, enabling rainy days as work days and thus accelerating the process.
Designed as if it were a bridge, or a tunnel, the house allows cross ventilation from the front to the back through all the spaces. In winter, the front patio offers shelter and direct sunlight. In summer, the lake in the back is perfect for swimming or water sports.
