Villas 72 Residence / DMTALLER

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Text description provided by the architects.Understanding the city and its architectural values was the first step in the process to achieve a project that would adapt to the new needs of users while taking into account the most outstanding aspects of the construction methods of the Yucatan peninsula.Through a meticulous study of the design elements and finishes of the houses in the city center, modern interpretations of these aspects could be achieved. The most important challenge of the project was the irregularly shaped terrain, with a narrow access point.The optimization of both volumes allowed circulation to be practically reduced to a minimum, simply having transition spaces between each one. Terraces allow shading through the walls in order to have a usable exterior space taking into account the temperatures of the site.The materials were chosen primarily to generate monochrome spaces where light and its reflections were the protagonists together with neutral colors in walls, floors, and ceilings. The project is based on the simplicity of elements that come together to bring a warm appearance with the use of wood from the region, generating ventilated and illuminated spaces. The textures are transcendent, always taking into account the pre-existing limestone in the surroundings, as well as the construction elements such as the bare voussoir, optimizing the project in economic terms.It was important to consider the construction methods since access to the site was challenging. However, by studying the project as an element that would use local materials and construction methods; It was possible to establish a great project materializing between the local workforce and the final materiality.Understanding the materials was important to achieve a bioclimatic and sustainable project and allowing the generation of comfort in all spaces. The villas are based on two important bodies each. The first one has a double-height gallery where the social area of the entire project is housed. The second volume or essential body of the project is modulated by three rooms and a parking lot that, according to the measurements, keep an adequate proportion maintaining the scale of the project.With its spatial and formal subtlety Villas 72 generates a unique place immersed in the center of Mérida; a heritage site with a lot of history. Through its simplicity, the complex manages to transport and transmit an atmosphere of peace to the user.It is important to mention that the project manages to settle in the immediate context not only through architecture but also through landscape design since within each of the houses we can find species of endemic plants of the region which live inside and outside the villas.