One of Mexico City's newest housing offerings, the Antonio Solá building in the swanky Colonia Condesa neighbourhood, exudes a sense of calm. But there's more to this residential scheme than its minimalist architecture character. Its architects, the dynamic studio Módica Ledezma, headed by co-founders Héctor Módica and Carlos Ledezma, explain they conceived it within the context of their ongoing search and experimentation for a 'new typology of housing' in the city's dense, urban environment.
Inside the four homes of Antonio Solá
The Antonio Solá building occupies a deep, relatively narrow plot. The architecture team, resisting the urge to plans homes horizontally, as typical apartments, organised each home's interiors vertically.
To ensure each residence makes for an enticing offering, the architects had to think carefully about spatial divisions.
'When it comes to properties of this type, there are spatial hierarchies, the front apartments tend to have greater privilege in terms of ventilation, views and location. A strategy was proposed so that each housing unit enjoyed these privileges, regardless of its location within the property: spatial democracy,' the architects write.
There are four townhouses in total, each unfolding upwards across four levels, featuring a generous planted courtyard and a roof terrace that offer outside space to their residents, while securing natural light throughout.
Internally, the residences are composed in a seemingly effortless, pared-down style, wrapped in light, natural hues and off-white-plastered crisp walls. The interiors are often enriched by vegetation and planters. Swathes of glazing around the central courtyards allow the sun to reach every corner on all floors.
The result is a family of homes that not only offer a sense of retreat, privacy and serenity for their users – but also allow residents to engage with the city through wide rooftop vistas, even though they might not have a direct frontage to the street.
'It is a place of rest from this effervescent city,' the architects conclude.
-
Fluid workspaces: is the era of prescriptive office design over?We discuss evolving workspaces and track the shape-shifting interiors of the 21st century. If options are what we’re after in office design, it looks like we’ve got them
-
This collection of slow furniture is a powerful ode to timeA serene exhibition of David Dolcini's 'Time-made' collection has fast-tracked its place into our hearts and homes
-
Is the Pragma P1 the most sustainable watch yet?Geneva-based brand Pragma combines industrial design with real sustainable credentials
-
A barrel vault rooftop adds drama to these homes in Mexico CityExplore Mariano Azuela 194, a housing project by Bloqe Arquitetura, which celebrates Mexico City's Santa Maria la Ribera neighbourhood
-
Explore a minimalist, non-religious ceremony space in the Baja California DesertSpiritual Enclosure, a minimalist, non-religious ceremony space designed by Ruben Valdez in Mexico's Baja California Desert, offers flexibility and calm
-
La Cuadra: Luis Barragán’s Mexico modernist icon enters a new chapterLa Cuadra San Cristóbal by Luis Barragán is reborn through a Fundación Fernando Romero initiative in Mexico City; we meet with the foundation's founder, architect and design curator Fernando Romero to discuss the plans
-
Enjoy whale watching from this east coast villa in Mexico, a contemporary oceanside gemEast coast villa Casa Tupika in Riviera Nayarit, Mexico, is designed by architecture studios BLANCASMORAN and Rzero to be in harmony with its coastal and tropical context
-
Mexico's long-lived football club Atlas FC unveils its new groundsSordo Madaleno designs a new home for Atlas FC; welcome to Academia Atlas, including six professional football fields, clubhouses, applied sport science facilities and administrative offices
-
Discover Casa Roja, a red spatial exploration of a house in MexicoCasa Roja, a red house in Mexico by architect Angel Garcia, is a spatial exploration of indoor and outdoor relationships with a deeply site-specific approach
-
HW Studio’s Casa Emma transforms a humble terrace house into a realm of light and spaceThe living spaces in HW Studio’s Casa Emma, a new one-bedroom house in Morelia, Mexico, appear to have been carved from a solid structure
-
An Oaxacan retreat offers a new take on the Mexican region's architectureThis Oaxacan retreat, Casa Caimán by Mexican practice Bloqe Arquitectura, is a dreamy beachside complex on the Pacific coast
