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Project: Montes House
Author: 57 Studio
        Maurizio Angelini, Sebastián Espinoza, Benjamín Oportot
Collaborator: Sergio Pizarro
Project: 2005
Construction: 2006
Location: Coelemu, Bío-Bío Region, Chile
Structural Engineer: Leopoldo Dominichetti
Construction: Jorge Carrasco
Materials: Masonry, Wood, Stone

The assignment consisted of projecting a country house for the rest of a family in the middle of nature. The site is part of an extensive park shared by a group of constructions, among which emphasizes a chapel projected by 57STUDIO (El Roble Chapel). The remainder consists of a sequence of family houses and winery cellars constructed with thick walls and extensive surfaces of clay tiles roofs. We wanted to incorporate the new house to the system of existing constructions without unbalancing the subtle prominence of the chapel.

Taking advantage of irregular topography by using different levels is a prominent characteristic in the operation of wine cellars in the wine making process, and also in the relation between houses and their patios, views and pathways that define the landscape. Continuing this premise, the new program is developed in three half-levels that are accommodated according to the slope of the land. The dorms area is in the highest point looking overhead onto the living and dining rooms through an interior runner. This difference entails a higher ceiling in the public zones, from where there are exterior views through a glazed gallery. The intermediate level, composed by the kitchen and service room, is illuminated by small windows to take control of the sun. The interior space itself has an intimate relation with the roof solution, accompanying the floor changes that occur in the interior, just like in the other constructions.

The use of the traditional constructive materials gives spaces a singular atmosphere of habitability and coziness that we wanted to reply in the new construction. The craft work of wood carpentries gave us the possibility to recover the constructive design experience of old times, where the opportunities of creation open possibilities to the classical tectonic exercise. In the perimeter walls, the bricks were arranged in their wide side permitting greater thermal isolation. The local stone, used in bases and exterior pavements, its incorporated it in the interior as a contribution to the intention of surrounding closeness.

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