A Cabin Perched on the Rugged, Remote Chilean Coast Is Equally Extreme

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Project Details:

Location: Tunquén, Chile

Year Built: 2020

Architects: Umberto Bonomo, Felipe Alarcón / @umbertobonomoarquitectos, @felipe.alarcon.c

Footprint: 1,883 square feet

From the Architects: "The landscape, the topography, and the climate are the defining elements for LBS House. There are two walls that protect the house—these two walls are climatic devices arranged precisely on the site to generate a constant calm inside the house. A habitable wall opposes the north wind, which is sporadic, but aggressive. The north wall encloses the bedrooms and services and stretches to generate as many panoramic views as possible. This wall is deep and complete with a continuous terrace that creates privacy for the bedrooms.

"The second wall consists of an ethereal, perforated plane. It is thin and seemingly fragile. This screen contains the outdoor patio with the pool and protects the integrated living and dining room. It sifts the light, the view, and the dominant, constant, and cold southerly wind. The open-plan living area measures approximately 538 square feet. It is integrated with the outdoor patio contained by the V-wall. The phenomenological transparency is a physical strategy that aims to multiply the space available by integrating the outdoors and the shaded interiors. 

"For the construction of the walls, we used reinforced concrete blocks. The structurally resistant artificial stone is an aesthetic expression and an economic response to the construction challenges of the site. Raw matter is left exposed to climate, seismic stresses, and weather. This decision gives a monolithic appearance to the structures. The geometric and rigid response of the design is underscored by the characteristics of the topography. The house interacts with the natural landscape, generating a chromatic dialogue between textures and temperatures."