Beachfront Home in Quintero, Chile

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La Baronia House was completed in 2009 by the Santiago based studios Nicolás del Rio and Max Núñez.
Just a few meters from the Pacific Ocean, this beachfront home has been constructed using weathering steel and glass, these materials were chosen in order to delay the effects of the corrosive sea air.
La Baronia House home is located in Quintero, a city in Valparaíso Province, Chile.

La Baronia House by Nicolás del Rio + Max Núñez:
“Corrosion caused by moisture and the salinity of sea air can destroy a structure in a short period of time. This place, a few meters from the Pacific Ocean, is not a bucolic landscape. Rather, the proximity to the breaking waves creates an extreme temporal condition for the architecture. The project delays natural deterioration thanks to a predominantly opaque outer envelope made of two inert materials: glass and weathering steel. Thus, the beachfront “idyllic” pavilion is replaced with a more airtight construction.
A tight budget and precise specifications meant the design had to have two levels and an interior expression defined by the use of wood. The articulation of this structure is different for the two levels, creating different relations with the horizon. Upstairs, in the common areas, the perimeter is demarcated by the repetition and variation of wood; downstairs the bedrooms are characterized by a horizontal window, detached from the wooden structure. These simple variations create different corners and views, creating distance and proximity with the outside, taking to an extreme the project condition as a haven by the sea.”