Francisco Marquez
In the beautiful, Mexican colonial town of San Miguel de Allende, this addition and renovation transforms a small, non-descript dwelling into a spacious contemporary vacation home filled with natural light, bold colors and a rich palette of materials. The original two-story home sat on a small lot and consisted of traditional small rooms with low ceilings. After living in the home for a few years the owner acquired the adjacent lot of the same size for the intent of enlarging and opening up his retreat.
From the street a rugged stone wall and a deeply set door of thick pine timber laced into a powerful wooden grid both invite and protect this home. Inside the entry door a 15-foot tall grid of glass invites passage through a garden into the living room, strong in color and form, yet transparent with another grid of glass opposite, open to a rear garden with a small orchard of citrus trees. A brick domed “boveda” ceiling caps the living room, soaring to 18 feet high. A long concrete fireplace hearth, deep-set niches and floor to ceiling glass create a sense of openness. The kitchen looks out into gardens and links both parts of the house, open with a bar counter to the living and to the dining through an art niche. Hand made pine cabinets are aniline dyed to the color of deep burgundy wine. Steel troweled concrete counters and nook seating is burnished smooth in a rich ochre color.
On the upper floor the master suite sits quiet and private, level with the existing roof. Terraces off each side invite sun and offer views in every direction. The bedroom is capped with a brick domed “boveda” ceiling and thick walls are sculpted into deep windowsills and the headboard for the bed. A two sided fireplace links the bedroom with the soaking tub which has been hand sculpted to the owner’s body and burnished in wine colored concrete that wraps into the fireplace and forms deep sills and ledges. The entire bath and entry/stair area of the master suite is topped with a brick barrel vault that spans above walls and visually enlarges the space. At the shower a multicolored tile mural covers the walls and floor, continuing into the bottom of the tub. Glass blocks are individually set and grouped into thick walls to offer privacy and cast sparkles of light as the sun moves through the seasons and the days.
The Mexican tile flooring was stained to a deep rose with a scattering of decorative deep purple accent tiles. Integrally colored concrete in ochre and burgundy are burnished smooth and their natural mottling gives warmth and life to the touch on counters, columns, benches and sinks. Soft shades of plum and sage green with accents of deep turquoise on the walls were inspired by the owner’s paintings and are used to layer the walls and spaces against each other and provide a beautiful background for the owner’s art collection.
From the street a rugged stone wall and a deeply set door of thick pine timber laced into a powerful wooden grid both invite and protect this home. Inside the entry door a 15-foot tall grid of glass invites passage through a garden into the living room, strong in color and form, yet transparent with another grid of glass opposite, open to a rear garden with a small orchard of citrus trees. A brick domed “boveda” ceiling caps the living room, soaring to 18 feet high. A long concrete fireplace hearth, deep-set niches and floor to ceiling glass create a sense of openness. The kitchen looks out into gardens and links both parts of the house, open with a bar counter to the living and to the dining through an art niche. Hand made pine cabinets are aniline dyed to the color of deep burgundy wine. Steel troweled concrete counters and nook seating is burnished smooth in a rich ochre color.
On the upper floor the master suite sits quiet and private, level with the existing roof. Terraces off each side invite sun and offer views in every direction. The bedroom is capped with a brick domed “boveda” ceiling and thick walls are sculpted into deep windowsills and the headboard for the bed. A two sided fireplace links the bedroom with the soaking tub which has been hand sculpted to the owner’s body and burnished in wine colored concrete that wraps into the fireplace and forms deep sills and ledges. The entire bath and entry/stair area of the master suite is topped with a brick barrel vault that spans above walls and visually enlarges the space. At the shower a multicolored tile mural covers the walls and floor, continuing into the bottom of the tub. Glass blocks are individually set and grouped into thick walls to offer privacy and cast sparkles of light as the sun moves through the seasons and the days.
The Mexican tile flooring was stained to a deep rose with a scattering of decorative deep purple accent tiles. Integrally colored concrete in ochre and burgundy are burnished smooth and their natural mottling gives warmth and life to the touch on counters, columns, benches and sinks. Soft shades of plum and sage green with accents of deep turquoise on the walls were inspired by the owner’s paintings and are used to layer the walls and spaces against each other and provide a beautiful background for the owner’s art collection.
Country: Mexico
