HW STUDIO, CASA TAO
HW Studio is a Mexican architecture firm that works primarily on the analysis and development of three realms of design: the future inhabitant; the location; and the architectural designer in question.
Casa Tao is an emblematic project of the form’s design vision, a building constructed "from the silent memory of those who inhabit it." Located in Puerto Vallarta, a town on Mexico's Pacific coast, where sunshine and humidity set the rhythm of daily life and where shade is a precious resource, Casa Tao translates the need for shelter, isolation and coolness due to the site's climatic conditions. The owners, a young couple with two children back from a trip to Japan, were seeking the same culture of passing time and silence imbued in Japanese homes.
The architects worked in a neighbourhood lacking picturesque views, interacting with a tree-lined square and orienting the building obliquely, so that the square could be seen without being completely exposed to the powerful sunlight.
The house does not face it neighbouring buildings but looks inward without closing in on itself, opening up to the sky, shade and main square. Everything is organised so that life unfolds in a slower, fuller way, more open to the invisible. The choice of materials reflects the call for shelter and coolness: solid, honest concrete that absorbs light gently and warms with usage and over time. A material that light settles on rather than bounces off.
The interior is set over two levels: the bedrooms, utility areas and garage are on the ground floor, while a light suspended double-height structure on the upper floor contains the communal areas, taking advantage of a brackish breeze blowing across the square and affording a great view of the trees.
The elevated patios act like terraces for contemplation: small platforms providing the opportunity to breathe in the scent of flowers and listen to the wind rustling through the treetops.
The bedrooms are set around a patio to provide more silence and air. Here, intimacy is expressed through delimitation not confinement like a sort of inner world. A curved wall welcomes and guides visitors, marking an entrance threshold, while a tree greets visitor as if it were a floral arrangement.
Architects: HW STUDIO; Leads Architects: Rogelio Vallejo Bores; Architects: Oscar Didier Ascencio Castro & Nik Zaret Cervantes Ordaz; Team: Juan Pablo Camacho Ayala; Structural Engineering: ARGA Constructora; Construction company: COMAQSO; Pictures: Gustavo Quiroz, Hugo Tirso Domínguez, César Belio
