This São Paulo Home’s Garage Is Now a Lush Entry Suffused With Light

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Project Details:

Location: São Paulo, Brazil

Architect: Estúdio Artigas

Footprint: 1,938 square feet

Builder: Engeark

Structural Engineer (Wood Structure): Stamade

Landscape Design: Rose Sano

Photographer: Pedro Kok / @kokpedro

From the Architect: "Having a house with land, enjoying natural light and ventilation, being able to adjust for the future: Casa da Travessa was born from these requests, which reflect the conditions of the pandemic and the deep-rooted desires of its inhabitants. To these ends, we sought to design a house that "breathes," both through its interior/exterior relationship and the use of materials. The basic concept was to insert new wooden elements (structural and sealing) into the internal and external spaces of the house. All new openings would be marked with translucent elements.

"First, we incorporated the old garage into the home’s floor plan, turning it into an entry with a garden. Its structure, made of garapeira wood, is wrapped in corrugated alveolar polycarbonate and fixed with aluminum frame sets, providing a space of multiple sensations. Here, a staircase leads to a floor with bedrooms. This transition from a social area to an intimate area is made through an intermediate space, with a mix of solid garapeira wood flooring and perforated metal sheets, which allow you to see the garden on the lower floor and the front door. The perforations also allow for ventilation.

"The bedroom wing is organized by a central wood frame structure that supports the entire technical area of the house, as well as defining the two bathrooms of the smaller bedrooms and the wardrobe of the primary bedroom. The primary’s bathroom occupies the roof of the old laundry room, expanding the area of the house. It is fully lit by the double polycarbonate facade. At the rear of the home is an annex that’s completely open to a lawn. It was also constructed using weather-resistant materials, employing masonry and exposed reinforced concrete. Its roof is a garden, improving the microclimate of the area and beautifying the view from the bedrooms and the building attached to the back of the property. Finally, we wanted to leave the front yard open to the street, instead of enclosing it with a wall."