Location: Tapalpa, Mexico Year: 2023 Architects: VAN VAN Atelier
28.0855 is located in rural development in the Sierra of Tapalpa, Jalisco; from its inception, honesty in design was sought, creating a well-defined narrative guide, along with constant respect for the natural environment, making it an integral part of it. In the rustic estates of Mexican towns, dry stone walls are used for delimitation. VAN VAN Atelier reinterprets this concept by using stone in its walls as the fundamental anchoring material. These are erected and assembled naturally, where each stone harmoniously rests upon the other with angular shapes meeting and fitting together, creating boundaries with the exterior. These boundaries are framed with curves to soften their robustness leaving a reminiscent touch of those limiting walls in the fields. Hence, the project’s name: 28.0855, the atomic weight of Silicon, the predominant element in silica the basis of most stones found in nature.
28.0855 is conceived as a multifunctional, recreational, restful, and contemplative space where residents experience a constant direct connection with nature and water, where only sensations of tranquility and peace are perceived. The project integrates with its surroundings from the outside, and inside, and the sequence of spaces generates contemplative walks through its central courtyard and interior gardens. Here, the Japanese Onsen begins to manifest, creating relaxation spaces surrounded by water, stones, and gardens, leading to calm and recreation. Towards the interior of the Spa, the primary aspect was the constant pursuit of privacy, necessary according to the space and its use. That is why each of the spaces is turned inwards, creating blind facades with stone boundary walls and endowing the project with its monolithic character.
For the design of this project, we implemented passive sustainability points; hence, most spaces are open to the south, significantly reducing the need to cool them in summer or heat them in winter. Windows with an air gap between glasses were proposed to retain heat indoors. Similarly, the stone walls regulate temperature peaks, increasing thermal and energy efficiency. The stone used in the project is native to this area, significantly reducing the project's carbon emissions impact. 28.0855 is the reflection of merging traditional Japanese architecture with Mexican vernacular architecture, dispensing superfluous details, always adhering to the heart of the project and its reason for being. The result is an honest, simple, functional design, but above all, creating the sought-after spatial experiences. Text description by the architects.
