Ortiz House is a minimalist residence located in São Paulo, Brazil, designed by Meireles + Pavan Arquitetura. The decision to preserve rather than demolish frames everything about Ortiz House. In Vila Nova Conceição, a São Paulo neighborhood where redevelopment pressure runs high, choosing to honor an existing structure represents both environmental commitment and architectural restraint. The 560 m2 residence near Parque Ibirapuera emerged from this conservation ethic – not as nostalgic preservation but as active reinterpretation, where original proportions and openings become the foundation for contemporary family living.
The architectural strategy divides the program across two volumes connected by a central courtyard. This courtyard operates as more than circulation – it creates cross ventilation, frames garden views, and establishes visual continuity between front and rear. The primary two-story volume addresses the street in white-painted brick, a material choice that references São Paulo’s modernist heritage while providing thermal mass and textural depth. At strategic points, this brick continues into interior spaces, dissolving the boundary between envelope and inhabitation. Wood appears selectively – entrance door, facade windows, rear deck – warming the composition without overwhelming the material hierarchy.
Inside, the ground floor social spaces unfold with deliberate fluidity. The kitchen abandons conventional isolation, splitting into two linked zones: a social area with casual dining counter and a technical preparation zone concealed by built-in sliding doors. Large openings flood these spaces with daylight, while a linear bench beneath the window transforms the kitchen into a place for lingering rather than mere function. Curved ceiling edges eliminate hard transitions, reinforcing the home’s continuous spatial language.
The living room ceiling punctures with circular apertures that diffuse daylight like suspended light wells. This manipulation of natural illumination recalls the spatial strategies of Luis Barragán, where light becomes both material and atmosphere. A central floor fireplace with exposed flue anchors one wall, flanked by suspended wooden-slat shelving that organizes the family’s collection with measured intimacy. The furniture selection curates modern and contemporary icons – Jorge Zalszupin’s Ondine armchairs, Jean Gillon’s Jangada chair, Ini Archibong’s Atlas Dining Chair – each piece chosen for formal rigor rather than decorative impulse.
