Onyx Building

Onyx Building by Diez + Muller Architectos

Architects: Diez + Muller Arquitectos
Location: Quito-Ecuador
Project Architect: Diez + Muller Arquitectos
Design: Gonzalo Diez P, Felipe Muller B
Collaboration: Alvaro Borrero, Ana Chiluisa, Paola Picciallo, Daniel Sáenz, Andrés Salazar
Construction: Consorcio Gerenpro – Ecuacanelos
Year: 2012
Photographs: Sebastian Crespo

On a 1400 m2 lot in the heart of the north area of the city of Quito, the commission required a building for medium-density housing. The L-shaped lot has a steep slope, as the ground is depressed an entire floor between the top and the bottom. The slope is evident along the entire front of the lot. There are two important trees on the sidewalk worth keeping.

The design arises from two main ideas: First, to divide the building into two blocks laid out in an L-shape, following the morphology of the ground in planimetric and topographic terms. This indicates that the block on the upper area of the lot will be laid out an entire floor over the annexed block, thus establishing a hierarchy between interior and exterior spaces, and giving more exclusivity to the densification of the buildings. Second, to create a stepped square that serves to connect the two housing blocks, but at the same time give the project a semi-public space which visually connects the square and the street, complemented by outdoor furniture, landscaping and the existent vegetation of the street.

Source: archdaily.com