Sonata Housing | Arkham Projects

Designed by Arkham Projects, The solution was to remove vertical circulations from the inside, and the result was an intersection of two staircases, one closed and one open, which give the project a playful minimalism, but not in the plastic sense, but economic, taking the words of the client as a basis for the design. A façade with program, essential for the project, a façade that cannot be removed, with horizontal repetitions, which simplify the whole when seeing it in its entirety. The white color works as the guideline, as a integrator, leaving the sun to be the protagonist while painting the façade with light, turning the project into a canvas where the shadows can be seen in different forms throughout the day.

photography by © Tamara Uribe

Its architectural program is simple, social areas on the ground floor and on the roof, vertically containing two bedrooms that are on the first level, a private area that can only be accessed through a corridor on the same level. Stairs not only play an important role in terms of visual privacy from the outside, but also prevent the circulation of visitors through private areas of the living units when accessing the roof. Each unit has a backyard and parking spots for two vehicles, which will soon be protected from the sun by the foliage of trees. A project that initially revolved around money, ended up revolving around intimacy, privacy, harmony, and curiosity. With the same architectural program and price as many, but a sincere project, where the function and aesthetics are one, where complexity and simplicity blend to become Sonata.

photography by © Tamara Uribe

Project Info:
Architects: Arkham Projects
Location: Merida, Yucatan, Mexico
Lead Architects: Benjamín Peniche Calafell y Jorge Duarte Torre
Area: 536.0 m2
Project Year: 2018
Photographs: Tamara Uribe
Manufacturers: CEMEX, MIDO, Interceramic, URREA
Project Name: Sonata Housing