Project: Mirador House
Architects: Lépore & Salvini – Arquitectura & Atelier
Location: Mar Del Plata, Argentina
Area: 3,520 sf
Year: 2020
Photographs by: Victoria E. Sierra King
Nestled among the highest blocks in Mar del Plata’s southern San Carlos neighborhood, this family home, designed for a city-famous landscaper and his wife, is a testament to thoughtful architecture. Inspired by the commanding panoramic views, the house takes on a ‘Greek Y’ form, artfully framing the grandeur of the Atlantic Ocean, complete with unique details like the cliff break to the south and ‘La Restinga’ to the northeast.
The upper floor, shaped like a Y, strategically places communal spaces and the master bedroom to soak in the breathtaking scenery, while the discreetly positioned ground floor integrates seamlessly with the native plant-filled garden. Here, geology, landscaping, and architecture converge in a graceful dance, harmonizing this residence with its natural urban landscape.
Located in a corner of the highest blocks in the south of Mar del Plata, in the San Carlos neighborhood, this family home, designed for a famous landscaper of the city and his wife, is brought to life. The morphology of the volume was inspired by the powerful panoramic views all around. In front of the house, the Atlantic Ocean in all its immensity has two unique details: the first one being toward the south, where the sea breaks on a cliff; and the second one, ‘La Restinga’, situated to the northeast, where the last stretch of the ‘Tandilia’ mountain chain submerges into the sea.
The initial project decision was to frame this panoramic view into two ‘photographs’, so the volume built on the upper floor took the shape of a ‘Greek Y’. Two of the ends are canyons that frame the landscape: Towards the break and the ‘Restinga’. To generate this, the common spaces like the kitchen, dining and living room, and the master bedroom were located on the upper floor. Leaving the rest of the rooms in the house, such as the garage, laundry room, and guest bedroom, located on the ground floor, hidden among the vegetation.
The morphological arrangement also resolved the protection of the garden and terraces towards the sun. From the southeast to the northeast, the house is sheltered from the strong and cold winds of the city of Mar del Plata, allowing the terraced gardens to make use of the sun and the different plant species to evolve favorably.
The garden in front, composed of plants of native species, ties the house to the earth, roots it and offers it to the natural urban landscape of the area, to its unique natural cliffs that were formed over time by sediments from the Andes Mountains that traveled through the wind. Some local grasses trapped these sediments that layer by layer formed the cliffs. Geology, landscaping and architecture dance together in this home.
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