Authors

Casita del Árbol is a multi-purpose space located in an area of high environmental value on the outskirts of the city of Santa Fe, amidst the characteristic landscape of the Paraná River.

The material and spatial conception of project arises from the synthesis of two references core topic. On the one hand, the Case Study Houses, as an example of work combined between industry and design; on the other, the reworking of the construction culture of the Argentinean pampas and its sheds, workshops, mills and factories: Structures simple metallic with gable roofs that combine economic, low-maintenance and locally produced solutions that populate suburban areas and whose beauty, spatial richness and technological peculiarity have been ignored by the academic architectural culture. This small house has a single interior space and a small double-height attic, accessed by a staircase and a semi-transparent terrace of unfolded metal that create the sensation of walking on air among the timbó (a typical tree of the area). The floor leave serves as a space for outdoor activities. The floor plan is determined by the dimensions of the W-profiles used for the main structure. The load-bearing structure has a twofold character: on the one hand, a maximum structural efficiency that avoids costly tensile stresses and, on the other hand, a series of metaphorical allusions to the surrounding natural landscape. The façades are striated, not only because of the use of sheet metal, but also because they are thick and alive. You can walk, plants grow, the traces of construction can be put back together again. Technology is expressed, life is present. During the day, the creepers with native flowers stand out, appearing as if suspended in the air by tensors, while the black colour makes the construction invisible at night.