The project in which Estudio Mero is involved belongs to a period in which Albin refined his construction procedures. At Casa Quijote, Estudio Mero respected the organization of the spaces and the general scheme of the house, reinterpreting its spatial order, and highlighting its contemporary potential through controlled interventions. One of the most obvious actions is the opening of the living-dining room to the garden through sliding doors that open onto a previously uncontemplated terrace, now differentiated with the extension of a wall and a pergola.
The renovation in Casa Quijote has two constants: on the one hand, the intensive use of wooden surfaces, in dialogue with the rest of the elements and materials of the house; on the other, accentuating the search for flexibility through mobile elements that can expand and reduce rooms, generating a changing and dynamic space.
The house is developed on two levels differentiated by their uses. The ground floor has the common areas; two living rooms, the dining room, a front terrace and a rear terrace that is crossed by the kitchen, the dining room, the toilet and the cleaning rooms. The first floor has three bedrooms, a study and a living room.
The renovation in Casa Quijote has two constants: on the one hand, the intensive use of wooden surfaces, in dialogue with the rest of the elements and materials of the house; on the other, accentuating the search for flexibility through mobile elements that can expand and reduce rooms, generating a changing and dynamic space.
The house is developed on two levels differentiated by their uses. The ground floor has the common areas; two living rooms, the dining room, a front terrace and a rear terrace that is crossed by the kitchen, the dining room, the toilet and the cleaning rooms. The first floor has three bedrooms, a study and a living room.
"Casa Quijote" by Estudio Mero. Photograph by Alum Gálvez.
"Casa Quijote" by Estudio Mero. Photograph by Alum Gálvez.
Description of project by Estudio Mero
Casa Quijote is a remodelling and reinterpretation of one of the houses designed by the engineer Boris Albin during the 20th century in Tecamachalco. The project comes about as the result of continual dialogue with the inhabitants of the house, and the analysis of Albin's approach to space. Thanks to Estudio Mero's proximity to the family that lives in the residence, common points with the original project were identified, such as spatial simplicity, functionality, and spaciousness.
Casa Quijote expresses its simplicity through the different applications and uses of wood in the floor, wall and ceiling, which parallel with the striated concrete of the façade. Thus, wood becomes a common language, and a crucial element to achieve flexibility through the sliding walls that either enlarge, or reduce the rooms (the project varies according to the family’s dynamics).
Casa Quijote has two floors. Upstairs you can find three bedrooms, a living room, and a study. Downstairs you will find two living rooms, a dining area, a front terrace, and a back terrace that is crossed by the kitchen, the dining room, the sanitary room, and the cleaning rooms, which bear the vitality of the whole house.
