Like a Choreography, the Garden Embraces and Softens the Straight Lines of the Facade | Serra House

Goldsmith Street beat out five other shortlisted nominees to scoop the coveted architecture award.

Proving that building on a budget doesn’t have to mean compromising on aesthetics, Uruguayan architecture practice Bercetche Estudio has completed the WS House, a single-family home on the outskirts of Montevideo. Built primarily with unpainted natural timber inside and out, the home takes on a minimalist design that highlights its simple palette of natural materials. A strong connection with the outdoors and access to natural light is also emphasized throughout the home.
Located in the La Tahona neighborhood about a half-hour drive east from the capital, the WS House stands out from its suburban neighbors with its contemporary form comprising boxy, flat-roofed volumes of varying heights. Spanning an area of nearly 2,750 square feet, the home is shaped like a horseshoe that wraps around the main entrance. Oversized square pavers that lead from the road to the front door emphasize the geometry of the home, while the timber cladding is applied in both horizontal and vertical orientations for visual interest.
The main entrance leads directly to the open plan living area, dining room and kitchen, which seamlessly connect to the outdoor terrace with a sunken circular pool through sliding glass doors. Flanking the main living areas are two bedroom wings: the master bedroom with an en suite bathroom is located on one side, and a secondary bedroom wing contains three flex rooms and two baths. Large windows let in ample natural light and views of the outdoors. “It is an easy-to-read house, built with sustainable and economical materials, which prove that with well-manipulated basic components, an expressive and energy efficient house can be made,” the architects explained. “[The house] shows great respect for the environment and, through a nice space distribution, takes advantage of it. Two opaque volumes separated from each other generates a permeable ‘in between’ that gives rise to all the common activities of the house.”

With changing seasons, the colors outside change ever so beautifully, giving us a whole new perspective…

Bronwyn Theobald in her shed studio, with coffee mugs by her favourite potter Ben Richardson and…

The trapezoidal tracing of the property is what defined the construction of this house into three clearly settled volumes. Vegetation also plays a protagonist role in the design of this house, both outdoors and indoors. The exterior trees enclose the house generating distinct tons of shades and colours during the different seasons of the year. Within the interior, the unruly green vegetation, contrasts with the stone floors and solid walls, reaching a perfect sense of balance. The entrance, a double height lobby that creates contrasting sensations and distinct visual ending points originated by water mirrors, light shafts, a tree and a staircase. The walls that shape this area, divide the spaces into private and public areas. The ground floor, is organized into two blocks each with a different purpose: The left side, is a white solid cube that integrates the study and the master bedroom and is separated from the other block by a water mirror and a yard that generates the desired privacy, peace and tranquility. The right side, the social area, is a rectangle closed to the west by a rigid wall and opened towards the interior of the house through large floor to ceiling glass walls, giving sober transparency to the yard with views to the garden and the central courtyard. The different angles within the construction achieve visual ending points with great character, as well as, enhancing the sensations provoked by the pure whites that evolve into mixed tones as the day and the seasons go by.