PRIVATE HOUSE
VILLA EDUNIA
Program: 4 bedrooms villa with pool and outbuildings, hurricane-proof and earthquake-resistant construction
Mission: General design + Visa
Location: Lurin, St Barthelemy
Status: Delivered in 2019
Budget: 1 600 000€
Surface: 192,4 m2
Villa Edunia is located high in the hills of St Barthélemy, on the road in Lurin with a plunging view of the Caribbean Sea and Gustavia. The site is very exposed to the wind, with major risk in the case of a hurricane, and has a south-west orientation with direct sun in the late afternoon and a view of the sunset. This orientation calls for a solid house with interior spaces protected from the sun. To meet these requirements, the villa comprises three concrete cubes on two levels, with double orientation between the garden and the sea, all covered by a large principal roof. This large wooden roof is an interpretation of a traditional lodge where the tribe gathered and, in this project, shelters the family and its friends, our 21st-century tribe. This roof also serves to protect the concrete cubes and reduce their exposure to the sun. The concrete cubes are separate as to be permeable to the wind, with two objectives.
The first, to take advantage of this permeability and the double orientation to provide natural ventilation for additional comfort, and to reduce energy consumption.
The second, in the case of a hurricane, allows the wind to blow through the building and reduce pressure on the construction. thus, reducing the risk of destruction. The project was being built when hurricane Irma hit and did not sustain any damage. However, should there be unavoidable destruction during a hurricane, the concrete cubes are conceived as autonomous hurricane shelters and the roof should it fly off, as it is independent from the concrete cubes, the people sheltered inside would remain protected.
PRIVATE HOUSE
VILLA EDUNIA
Program: 4 bedrooms villa with pool and outbuildings, hurricane-proof and earthquake-resistant construction
Mission: General design + Visa
Location: Lurin, St Barthelemy
Status: Delivered in 2019
Budget: 1 600 000€
Surface: 192,4 m2
Villa Edunia is located high in the hills of St Barthélemy, on the road in Lurin with a plunging view of the Caribbean Sea and Gustavia. The site is very exposed to the wind, with major risk in the case of a hurricane, and has a south-west orientation with direct sun in the late afternoon and a view of the sunset. This orientation calls for a solid house with interior spaces protected from the sun. To meet these requirements, the villa comprises three concrete cubes on two levels, with double orientation between the garden and the sea, all covered by a large principal roof. This large wooden roof is an interpretation of a traditional lodge where the tribe gathered and, in this project, shelters the family and its friends, our 21st-century tribe. This roof also serves to protect the concrete cubes and reduce their exposure to the sun. The concrete cubes are separate as to be permeable to the wind, with two objectives.
The first, to take advantage of this permeability and the double orientation to provide natural ventilation for additional comfort, and to reduce energy consumption.
The second, in the case of a hurricane, allows the wind to blow through the building and reduce pressure on the construction. thus, reducing the risk of destruction. The project was being built when hurricane Irma hit and did not sustain any damage. However, should there be unavoidable destruction during a hurricane, the concrete cubes are conceived as autonomous hurricane shelters and the roof should it fly off, as it is independent from the concrete cubes, the people sheltered inside would remain protected.
The project responds to the constraints of its environment in both its architectural conception and the utilization of passive systems for a comfortable and resilient architecture. The project juxtaposes the contrasts of contemporary volumes with a traditional wooden roof with exposed beams, a bridge between two eras, a link between the past and the future, a house designed for today and for tomorrow.
