As for the structure, walkable flowered slabs are built and consists of load walls and grid slabs to insulate it thermally and to generate large voids for the exterior views. The building materials and construction system were simple so that the workforce could be local as there is a shortage of skilled labour in this area.
Description of project by RED Arquitectos
Casa Nivana honors and respects the land, hidden among the desert vegetation, it transforms with the landscape each rainy season. Submerged in the ground, it modifies the perception when inhabiting it, configuring a discreet and silent space. The free views towards the desert and the sea in the distance, makes you find yourself in spaces that integrate the botanical life on the site. Casa Nivana is a tribute to our client's parents, represented by two cactuses located next to the pool, which refer to her father's marine life.
Located in the middle of the desert, between Cabo San Lucas and La Paz, its elongated part is oriented towards the favorable winds of the Pacific, while the narrow and closed side receives the heat of the insolation. One of the main strategies consisted of generating visuals at sunset, impressive in this area.
The program is divided into two areas, the private one consisting of the living room, kitchen, outdoor dining room and the bedroom. In the public area, divided by an exterior corridor, there are two other rooms, each with a bathroom, designed to be occupied by artists' residences.
The scenic aspect, given by the musical vocation of our client, is developed in the floated and passable slabs, where a musical concert with a sunset view can be offered. At the same time, the house can become an agora on its steps where the land and its botanical garden become the setting for contemplation or some performance.
To compensate for the lack of labor and construction materials in the area, we decided to use a simple construction method suitable for the local workforce. Structurally, the house works with load-bearing walls and reticular slabs, allowing it to clear large gaps and thermally insulate it from insolation. The walls were built of block and cement, in the house no type of paint or ceramic coating was used, all the finishes are a mixture of cement with different proportions of natural clay soil.
Breaking the barriers between the outer space of the desert and the interior was a design premise, since as the client always stated, “everything is about the earth”. Casa Nivana responds to the extreme climate of Baja California and in turn integrates with the nature that receives it and the emotional elements found in the memory of its inhabitant. The house levitates on the ground, given the wide overhangs of the slabs, and it perches in a delicate and forceful way as it merges with the desert that it embraces.
