Articles by Andreas Luco

The Casa da Mata is an innovative loft, carefully designed to naturally and harmoniously integrate the internal and external spaces, creating a fluid and continuous connection with the surrounding environment. The loft’s design celebrates simplicity and elegance, combining simple forms with a meticulous selection of high-quality materials. The Brazilian design furniture complements the space with a touch of authenticity and local charm. This furniture not only enhances the space but also tells a rich story of Brazilian tradition and craftsmanship, adding cultural value to the contemporary design of the loft. Additionally, incorporating modern technologies transforms the Casa da Mata into a functional and futuristic space where sophistication meets practicality.

Each house is a story where it’s beautiful to enter, to observe, to listen, to assimilate. It is here where the architect, with his direction, can intervene to create a new scene! The lake house is a ’70s cottage that has always been used as a holiday home. After this past, there was the desire on the part of one of the heirs to make it a home to be lived in all year round. His home! The need to renovate it and revive it to accommodate a new, lively and dynamic personality, pandering to his passions and requirements, was a strong stimulus for the project! The shared objective has been to make it a home to live in all year round, enjoying a private life or with friends.

We imagined a continuous space between the street and the house, where boundaries dissolve and coexist. A series of circular columns configure a domestic landscape, where the space structure forms the foundational matrix, and the objective is not the object but the experience. The grid structures the program and supports it without altering the ground. The ramp extends the ground and its use, allowing one to look over a landscape of hills and plains.

This commission involved renovating and adapting a traditional two-story house in the Provenza neighborhood in Medellín to transform it into common workspaces and small apartments, sharing services. The house, which had already been converted years ago into the offices of a local real estate company, had a stable structure of load-bearing walls, floors, roofs, and wooden ceilings that we decided to renew and maintain.

Every year, sometime in the autumn, a four to six-month window opens for small improvement works to be made in anticipation of the desired spring opening date of ALFACS, a vacation spot in Alcanar, Tarragona, on the Mediterranean Sea’s edge and near the Delta de l’Ebre Natural Park. Since 2016, the Barcelona-based studios Bajet Giramé and JAAS have been leading this respectful and meticulous gradual architectural metamorphosis: a progressive transformation that adds new elements and quality spaces every year for the enjoyment of its visitors. Maria Giramé, Pau Bajet and Manuel Julià, architects and heads of their respective studios, explain the philosophy behind this renovation under the motto “there is no single project, but a process that is constantly evolving”. They emphasize a continuous process of evolution rather than a single, completed project. An approach that underscores flexibility, adaptability, and a long-term vision: There is no “one” project to be completed, but rather a repertoire of strategies and infrastructural actions that have led to a process that is meant to be endless, in constant transformation.

Located in Southeast Vietnam, Phan Thiet City is renowned for its beautiful beaches, white sand, and year-round warm sunshine. Situated ideally close to the city center, the construction land was initially an old resort built over 20 years ago on terrain sloping towards the sea. Recognizing the land’s great potential, we decided to leverage its existing advantages and incorporate improvements to create a new, harmonious, and friendly resort. We considered using local materials and appropriate construction methods. The goal is to create a welcoming space that respects the site’s existing values while leaving room for new ideas.