Thisispaper Community
Join today.
Enter your email address to receive the latest news on emerging art, design, lifestyle and tech from Thisispaper, delivered straight to your inbox.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Instant access to new channels
The top stories curated daily
Weekly roundups of what's important
Weekly roundups of what's important
Original features and deep dives
Exclusive community features
Zuzanna Gasior
Sep 5, 2022

Zicatela House by Ludwig Godefroy is a small weekend house located on top of a hill in front of Zicatela beach, in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico.

The main goal of the house was to give the owner a break from Mexico City's megalopolis and urban habits by coming to Oaxaca to enjoy the heat of the Mexican coast and the peaceful light.

This house responds to a double landscape. On one side in the background are the beach and the sea, on the other are the mountains and the agave fields, the plant that is used to make mezcal and tequila. This project has the unique characteristic of being a countryside house next to the sea, instead of a beach house.

The house is based on this duality, the duality of its surroundings, and it's able to respond to the mountains and be protective as a concrete fortress as well as a wide-open space; giving you the feeling to live outside in a garden, making the border between in and out disappear.

On a small plot of 300 m2, Zactela House is built according to a defensive architectural typology, where a wall surrounds the entire terrain and creates an entirely controlled environment on the inside, turning it into an open-sky fortress, with only one main view towards the sky, the only constant in the present.

"The house is a bunker on the outside, one of those massive concrete structures I used to see in Normandy -where I was born-, protecting a Mexican pyramid on the inside, one of those I see when I travel around Mexico, the country where I've been living and working for 10 years now" adds the architect.

No items found.
Join +
We love less
but there is more.
Become a Thisispaper+ member today to unlock full access to our magazine, advanced tools, and support our work.
Travel Guides
Submission Module
Print Archive
Curated Editions
+ more
Buy now
No items found.
Zuzanna Gasior
Sep 5, 2022

Zicatela House by Ludwig Godefroy is a small weekend house located on top of a hill in front of Zicatela beach, in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico.

The main goal of the house was to give the owner a break from Mexico City's megalopolis and urban habits by coming to Oaxaca to enjoy the heat of the Mexican coast and the peaceful light.

This house responds to a double landscape. On one side in the background are the beach and the sea, on the other are the mountains and the agave fields, the plant that is used to make mezcal and tequila. This project has the unique characteristic of being a countryside house next to the sea, instead of a beach house.

The house is based on this duality, the duality of its surroundings, and it's able to respond to the mountains and be protective as a concrete fortress as well as a wide-open space; giving you the feeling to live outside in a garden, making the border between in and out disappear.

On a small plot of 300 m2, Zactela House is built according to a defensive architectural typology, where a wall surrounds the entire terrain and creates an entirely controlled environment on the inside, turning it into an open-sky fortress, with only one main view towards the sky, the only constant in the present.

"The house is a bunker on the outside, one of those massive concrete structures I used to see in Normandy -where I was born-, protecting a Mexican pyramid on the inside, one of those I see when I travel around Mexico, the country where I've been living and working for 10 years now" adds the architect.

Architecture
section is proudly under the patronage of:
John Pawson

Independent publications like Thisispaper rely on support by readers and companies to be sustainable.

Current patron of Architecture Section:

If you are ready to book a slot, please use the following link:
Become a Patron

Introducing OS
An intimate space which helps creative minds thrive.
Discover. Share. Embrace.
Thisispaper Shop
Shop Now
Thisispaper+Guides
Discover the most inspiring places and stories through carefully-curated travel guides.
Explore all GuidesExplore channels