Casa en Palmilla

The project is located in the hills of Los Cabos and is based on a careful reading of the climate and the surrounding context. A pair of lightweight roofs—resolved in wood and clay—organize the ensemble. Their 2.1-meter cantilevered overhangs wrap the different volumes, casting generous shadows over walls and glazing and improving the house’s thermal performance in response to the regional climate.

The house is organized into four independent volumes arranged beneath these two L-shaped roofs. Their non-orthogonal layout gives rise to a trapezoidal central courtyard, a void that articulates the entire composition. This courtyard is almost blind: of its four edges, the shortest remains unbuilt and opens toward the western mountains; another gathers the entrances to the secondary bedrooms; a third is defined by a rhythm of 20 × 20-centimeter openings that provide privacy to the main suite while filtering soft light into its interior; the final edge corresponds to the large window of the social area, the only space that opens directly onto this gravel garden at the heart of the house.

Each of the four volumes accommodates a distinct program. The first houses the service areas: parking, storage rooms, mechanical spaces, service quarters, and laundry. Beneath the same roof, the second volume contains the vanity area and three identical guest bedrooms. Inside, a detached wooden volume—separated from the roof—defines the bathroom–dressing room, generating a sense of spatial continuity and openness.

Beneath the second L-shaped roof, the third volume unfolds, comprising the primary suite, two independent walk-in closets, and a study that, depending on how the house is used, can function as a family room or as a private extension of the suite itself.

The composition culminates in the fourth volume, which brings together the heart of the home: the living room, dining area, and open kitchen. Two 12-meter-long glazed openings along its longitudinal façades transform this space into a covered terrace. This gesture links the central courtyard with the main terrace, the swimming pool, and the horizon of the San José coastline.

The division of the house into two main volumes allows it to adapt to different modes of occupation. It can be inhabited as a single-bedroom residence, and when necessary, the second “L” can be activated to expand its capacity. The placement of each element responds both to the relationship between program and orientation and to a constant pursuit of cross ventilation. The material palette, in dialogue with the projected shadows, ensures that the house remains cool to the touch. Resolved with restraint, the project presents itself as a monochromatic monolith of sand-colored textured concrete, complemented and softened by wood joinery and a roof of structural laminated oak.

Furniture and decoration are fully integrated into the architecture: their textures, colors, textiles, and materials—together with the endemic, long-established landscape of the surroundings—naturally accompany the user’s experience.