Argentinian studio Andrés Remy Arquitectos have completed a house in Pilar, Buenos Aires, consisting of volumes stacked at sloping angles.  

Called Casa Orquidea (Orchid House) the concrete building has large recessed windows, with smaller openings in the south facade.

The following information is from the architects:

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The Orchid was a challenging project, committed by a young couple with two sons, enthusiastic about sustainable architecture. After consulting several architects, they gave the commission to Andrés Remy, who had investigated these concepts in New York at Rafael Viñoly’s Studio for four years.

 

Sustainability implies a lot of varieties, such as efficient and rational use of energy and water, natural ventilation and lighting, and low-environment-impact materials. The house has the best orientation, possible thanks to the large lot. The concept came from the client’s hobby, growing orchids. The house is based on the different parts of the orchid: the roots, the stem and the flower.

The sun rays impact in the interior of each room, were also studied, to determine the optimal depth to place the windows. This gives a unique volumetric outcome to the project. Taking advantage of sun rays in winter increases the interior temperature up to a comfortable level. The design includes glazed volumes with good thermal insulation and small windows in the worst orientation, such as the south facade. The windows consist of aluminum frames supplied with thermal bridge breaker and double-hermetic-glass. A wide variety of insulating materials were also used, as well as water based paint and wall and roof air chambers.

In the lower floor, the convenient location of the opening windows allows natural air flow helping to decrease the humidity in the room. What’s more, the big thresholds create a good distribution of fresh air. All this, gives account of the complexity of the house, a glass and concrete flower, designed according to a program of needs and the client’s concerns.

Credits
Design: Andrés Remy Arquitectos
Desing Team: ANDRES REMY, HERNAN PARDILLOS (asociated), LUCILA LOPEZ, PAULA MANCINI, JULIETA RAFEL.
Colaborators: LILIAN KANDUS, CORAL BANEGAS, GISELA COLOMBO, DIEGO SIDDI, MARTIN DELATORRE, JUAN ETALA, SEBASTIAN REMY.
Design Process: six months.
Date of completition: December 2008
Location: The house is located in a closed neighborhood called “Haras del Sol”, in the city of Pilar, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Lot size: 3640m_
Lower floor: 325m_
Upper floor: 140m_