Project: Casa Arca
Architects: Gonzalo Iturriaga Atala
Location: La Reina, Chile
Area: 2,583 sf
Year: 2022
Photographs by: Cristobal Palma
Casa Arca by Gonzalo Iturriaga Atala
Casa Arca, designed by Gonzalo Iturriaga Atala in La Reina, Chile, is a remarkable architectural project that involves the restructuring and transformation of an existing dwelling. With new owners and a desire for spatial, material, and organizational changes, the proposal focuses on establishing a strong connection with the surrounding environment, particularly the ravine on the north facade.
The Proposal is presented as the spatial and programmatic restructuring of the first dwelling developed by the IAA Gonzalo Iturriaga Arquitectos office. 8 years after the execution of this dwelling, the change of owners and, as a result, new spatial, material, and order approaches were part of the requirements delivered for the development of the project.
Part of the design exercise was based on establishing new openings and sound relationships with the ravine on the north facade of the project. The cutting and sectioning of concrete elements, the restructuring of the upper box, and the programmatic reorganization were key in the final definition of the proposal.
A concrete volume as the first floor articulates the public rooms from a sequence of spaces, mediated by a rigid core of vertical circulation and services.
From the operation of inserting voids and specific openings on the perimeter, a constant spatial relationship is established between the interior space and the surroundings.
A second level, determined as a wooden box, organizes the restrooms. Configured from 3 areas. The first of public order mediates between the vertical connection void, the courtyard, and the projection to the city. The other two bedrooms seek to be a wooden box with specific views of the ravine.
