Ajijic House
An adaptable, integrated, vernacular and low maintenance was requested by the client for her summerhouse in the Chapala Lake in Jalisco. Combined with a simple housing program the geometry responds to the way it is constructed. The cubes of the house represent the single parts of the family, which exist as individuals but also as a group.
The configurations of the cubes give possibility for individual space, by partly touching each other, partly overlapping and diving into each other. They create private, semi-public and public spaces in a complex way through a simple act. A house that can serve for all possible constellations that can come up in a family life.
The materials of the cubes are considered as a contrast of transparent and opaque, reflective (the inner space and the surrounding) and shining through. The openings orchestrate with the surroundings exposing permeability towards the views and protecting against cold northern winds.
All of that shall give the complex of the building an appearance of simplicity and in the same way a very high complexity inside and in its relation to the ambient.
Constructing with the surrounding material rediscovers an ancient system which we often forget trough technological advance. Colors and textures in the walls and the landscape merge to bring house and environment together. A close relation with the client and a set of artists to design some interiors and furniture gave a further step to the customization of the living requirements for the users.
