The new design arrived. Actually, stating it like that makes it sound as if the new plans were bundled up and dropped in by a stork, and not the effort of hard work and effort of the part of D0. But this Friday, Guillermo sent me the solution to the vertical element problem in the Nosara house. It is wonderful.
There is a certain balance in the design. The horizontal volume is 5 modules long. Each module is about 15 feet- a little more after conversion from metric. The vertical volume, added recently, is 4 modules tall, leaving a visual 5:4 ratio which grounds the building and makes the vertical elements look slender, and delicate, like a bell tower, or a spire. The horizontal volume is largely the same, and when I say the same, Guillermo noted to the in an e-mail that the break through made what that the vertical projection really only complimented the organic proposal, while it made the compact model look heavy, and grotesque. The vertical element is not one, but two stories above the kitchen, with a roof terrace. From this vantage point, I submit that it will be possible to see the sands of the beach of Gillones. This view is what is driving me. Guillermo, in our last meeting, brings up an interesting point...perhaps it is not necessary to build vertically as high as I think. The western portion of my land represents a ridge of sorts, and the land survey shows the mountain dropping away beyong it. There is not much of a rise between the proposed site for the house and that ridge, and perhaps with proper cleaning of the trees, that is, pruning them up, and leaving the upper levels, I might be able to see the beach, with a reaosnable facsimile of neighbor Howie's views, from the main level of the house. Still, I want to explore vertical. I think that the distance of the main house to that ridge will interupt the line of site, and prevent seeing the beach Furthermore, I think the trees on Howie's property could grow up too tall and obstruct the view.
Still, we are not committing to the vertical elemetn until we have properly studied the view at different hieghts. Ashley White of Nosara Real Estate is coordinating the cleaning of the site, from the street, to the proposed building site, to the ridge line. Then Alex Bravo, of Datum zero, or Guillermo, will go to the site and take images at different hieghts to get an idea of the possibilties.
My input is this...the closer I build to the ridge line, the better the view will be. This is a Geometrical reality. Drawing a line from the beach, to the ridge creates a line that is intersected at a shorter hieight the closer one gets tot he ridge line. Guillermo and I are currently exploring how the house can be situated to accomplish this, taking into account the countors of the property and the set back required by law.
My other input was the inclusion of the vertical element. Guillermo indulged my tastes. Now the organic proposal has a two story slender vertical appendage, raeaching up over the kitchen into the Blue Costa Rica sky.
There will be decisions to make. If moving the project site allows for the view I covet to be obtained from the horizontal portion of the house, then perhaps the vertical elements is deprioritized. The vertical element is going to increase the size of the house from 1600 feet sqaured, to 1900. that goes quickly from cozy to huge. ADd in a meditation room of, say 2-300 sq/ft, and we are over 2000. I guess that is not the end of the world, but I feel protestant pangs of guilt about owning that much house. More important, we are dealing with a strict budget on this project, and I dont know that the comprimises of building materials is going to be worth the cost of the vertical element if the view can be obtained elsewise. If there is no view, or only a view of the water from the horizotnal element, and I suspect there will be, all bets are off and up we go. If there is a view, then it will bear some discussion about accomplishing the other goals of the porject.
Ok, on the vertical element. it is beautiful. It allows for rain run off by being slimmer than the horizotnal modules...mabe 10 feet side. I am not certain how the floors are reached, since the spiral stair cases described in the other building plans might eat up most of the real estate if added in the vetical volume, but then again, what are our options? Outdoor stair cases, or rungs really. The western and southern exposures are completely glass. I cannot tell, but hope, that these will open. I expect they will, becuase the spire has a flat roof, with no over hang, and thus these rooms will be exposed to a lot of sun, and could get very, very hot.
The flat roof is an illusion. It is a flat roof over a slanted roof to allow for drainage. Still, can you imagine being, what, 45 feet over the ridge line and looking all around you? it would be a sea of green. Oh, and blue.
Here, Guillermo describes it best in his recent e-mail:
I think the tower will look beautiful, there are some details that are difficult to translate through these dwgs. that we will capture on the final dwgs. Such things as real materials employed for the outside surfaces of the tower. In some of the initial sketches that we internally discussed, the tower will have a material such as Corten steel or axodized copper which will give a timeless spirit, as well it will sit on a concrete base that gives a sense of permanence amd belonging.
The windows are operable, and YES, the tower has two levels above the kitchen, also a terrace with a canopy above.
There is a certain balance in the design. The horizontal volume is 5 modules long. Each module is about 15 feet- a little more after conversion from metric. The vertical volume, added recently, is 4 modules tall, leaving a visual 5:4 ratio which grounds the building and makes the vertical elements look slender, and delicate, like a bell tower, or a spire. The horizontal volume is largely the same, and when I say the same, Guillermo noted to the in an e-mail that the break through made what that the vertical projection really only complimented the organic proposal, while it made the compact model look heavy, and grotesque. The vertical element is not one, but two stories above the kitchen, with a roof terrace. From this vantage point, I submit that it will be possible to see the sands of the beach of Gillones. This view is what is driving me. Guillermo, in our last meeting, brings up an interesting point...perhaps it is not necessary to build vertically as high as I think. The western portion of my land represents a ridge of sorts, and the land survey shows the mountain dropping away beyong it. There is not much of a rise between the proposed site for the house and that ridge, and perhaps with proper cleaning of the trees, that is, pruning them up, and leaving the upper levels, I might be able to see the beach, with a reaosnable facsimile of neighbor Howie's views, from the main level of the house. Still, I want to explore vertical. I think that the distance of the main house to that ridge will interupt the line of site, and prevent seeing the beach Furthermore, I think the trees on Howie's property could grow up too tall and obstruct the view.
Still, we are not committing to the vertical elemetn until we have properly studied the view at different hieghts. Ashley White of Nosara Real Estate is coordinating the cleaning of the site, from the street, to the proposed building site, to the ridge line. Then Alex Bravo, of Datum zero, or Guillermo, will go to the site and take images at different hieghts to get an idea of the possibilties.
My input is this...the closer I build to the ridge line, the better the view will be. This is a Geometrical reality. Drawing a line from the beach, to the ridge creates a line that is intersected at a shorter hieight the closer one gets tot he ridge line. Guillermo and I are currently exploring how the house can be situated to accomplish this, taking into account the countors of the property and the set back required by law.
My other input was the inclusion of the vertical element. Guillermo indulged my tastes. Now the organic proposal has a two story slender vertical appendage, raeaching up over the kitchen into the Blue Costa Rica sky.
There will be decisions to make. If moving the project site allows for the view I covet to be obtained from the horizontal portion of the house, then perhaps the vertical elements is deprioritized. The vertical element is going to increase the size of the house from 1600 feet sqaured, to 1900. that goes quickly from cozy to huge. ADd in a meditation room of, say 2-300 sq/ft, and we are over 2000. I guess that is not the end of the world, but I feel protestant pangs of guilt about owning that much house. More important, we are dealing with a strict budget on this project, and I dont know that the comprimises of building materials is going to be worth the cost of the vertical element if the view can be obtained elsewise. If there is no view, or only a view of the water from the horizotnal element, and I suspect there will be, all bets are off and up we go. If there is a view, then it will bear some discussion about accomplishing the other goals of the porject.
Ok, on the vertical element. it is beautiful. It allows for rain run off by being slimmer than the horizotnal modules...mabe 10 feet side. I am not certain how the floors are reached, since the spiral stair cases described in the other building plans might eat up most of the real estate if added in the vetical volume, but then again, what are our options? Outdoor stair cases, or rungs really. The western and southern exposures are completely glass. I cannot tell, but hope, that these will open. I expect they will, becuase the spire has a flat roof, with no over hang, and thus these rooms will be exposed to a lot of sun, and could get very, very hot.
The flat roof is an illusion. It is a flat roof over a slanted roof to allow for drainage. Still, can you imagine being, what, 45 feet over the ridge line and looking all around you? it would be a sea of green. Oh, and blue.
Here, Guillermo describes it best in his recent e-mail:
I think the tower will look beautiful, there are some details that are difficult to translate through these dwgs. that we will capture on the final dwgs. Such things as real materials employed for the outside surfaces of the tower. In some of the initial sketches that we internally discussed, the tower will have a material such as Corten steel or axodized copper which will give a timeless spirit, as well it will sit on a concrete base that gives a sense of permanence amd belonging.
The windows are operable, and YES, the tower has two levels above the kitchen, also a terrace with a canopy above.
posted by warnerk at
10:42 AM
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