3D Perspective - Monolyt, Estaleiro Beach, SC
On Praia do Estaleiro, in Santa Catarina, the architecture of the residential Monolyt is born from the mimesis and poetics of the erosion process , intertwining natural elements and human presence.
The phenomenon instigates the procedural thinking behind architectural volumes, integrating the built and the pre-existing – and concretizing a proposal that respects scales, experiences and the local context, proposing a positive legacy for the region.
With the project, Architects Office was a finalist this year in the biggest global architecture award: the World Architecture Festival .
The meeting between the sea, the rocks and the vegetation
When analyzing the coastline in more depth, one notices the presence of more resistant rocks – which shape the coasts – and less resistant rocks – which, when eroded, form the beaches. Estaleiro Beach is the result of this dynamic, with two rocky massifs that frame the project site. The proposed human intervention seeks to integrate with the natural environment, respecting the meeting point between the sea, the rocks and the vegetation. With a topography defined by the unevenness between two plateaus, the 180-meter-deep terrain is juxtaposed between the sea and the river. Considering the APP (permanent preservation area) strip, 30 meters of native vegetation along the watercourse are respected and preserved in their original form. It is only from the remaining extension that the project begins to be conceived: a transitional architecture, mimicking the local signs.
Architectural research and the rock as a monument
The rock, as a monument , is revealed in the architectural investigation: the project reveals the rock as a primary element; a monolith to be sculpted. In a balance between solid and empty spaces, the processes of human erosion are applied, and define both the occupation of the residential towers and the open spaces for socializing, leisure and circulation flows, preserving the native vegetation. Water emerges as the last and most symbolic element of this ecosystem – on the ground floor, water mirrors evoke the sensation of entering a cave, connecting architecture and nature.
The micro scale of the building and the rock as treasure
After the stones and open spaces, the next subsystem of the project’s architecture explores rock as treasure – a concept that explores the idea of discovery and preciousness. This principle is analogous to Pyrite , a rock that, when peeled, reveals a cuboid formation of unexpected brilliance, comparable to the hidden wealth in the Monolyt. The design process reaches the microscale of the building in the proposition of furniture pieces. The presence of stone pieces – some designed exclusively for the project – reiterates the power of rock as a source of inspiration, and the maximum integration that occurs with the object in which it is inserted.
Want to know more about the project? Check out our e-book here , a unique editorial developed by AO, bringing together chapters that delve into the complete investigations carried out throughout the design process of the Monolyt architectural project.
