Arkham Project finishes residence in Yucatan, featuring a large tree growing through its roof

Akúun House, located in the Yucatán state of Mexico, aims to connect its inhabitants with Nature. Designed by Mérida-based practice, Arkham Project, the house draws inspiration from the mid-century architecture, envisaged to be the extension of landscape.

The 1000-square metre-footprint of the house occupies approximately one-fifth of the site, maximising the landscape surrounding the house. It is expressed as a series of pours rooms, resembling more like a pavilion.

The architecture of the house is expressed through simple volumes, with the roof and floor being the two main elements. Built using concrete and wood, the house opens up towards the landscape, blurring the edge between inside and outside.

The 70 metres-long house features two internal courts, which bring light and ventilation inside the house. Careful planning ensures increased natural ventilation, lowering the need for air conditioning.

The design gesture includes an existing tree as part of the house architecture, while the internal spaces wrap around it, separating private and public spaces. The concrete flat roof is carefully constructed to allow the existing tree to flourish.

 

“Casa Akúun, or in Spanish “casa Álamo”, is a house of almost seventy metres in length, which is virtually divided by a tree of this species, located in a patio that is trapped between the public and private areas of the house,” explains Arkham Project.

 

They ontinues, “Part of the intention of the house is to be able to join the interior with the exterior, forgetting barriers and ensuring that it can be walked from side to side with total freedom.”

Once inside, the internal organisation follows the landscape. All the private rooms are facing the landscape towards the north, with spaces on the south side being support spaces. The architects have provided access to the house both from the south and north east, with the latter being the social one.

A meandering path through the existing greenery brings the visitor to the main living room on the east side. This space is defined by a large  Guanacaste tree, sort of an outdoor porch area designed to be fully opened to the greenery. The rooms feature sliding doors which help to extend the living room, creating in a dialogue with the landscape.

 

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PROJECT DETAILS

Project name: Akúun House
Architecture firm: Arkham Project / GCW
Principal architect: Arq. Benjamín Peniche Calafell / Arq. Jorge Duarte Torre / Arq. GCW
Design team: Arq. Alan May / Arq. Iván Valdez / Arq. Lorena Cervera
Project location: Mérida, Yucatán
Built area: 1,028 m²
Photography: Yoshihiro Koitani
Design year: 2020
Construction: Cáceres Arquitectos y Asociados S.A de C.V
Typology: Housing