A residential renovation project in Santiago, Chile, has redefined an existing home on the foothills of the Andes. Architect Iván Bravo led the transformation, creating a dwelling that seamlessly blends its historical layers with modern extensions. The project, known as Casa Tam, moves beyond simple expansion, instead weaving together fragments of past layouts with new additions to form a complex, layered domestic landscape.
The design approach embraces the home's evolutionary history, rather than erasing it. This results in a unique structure that openly displays its various construction phases, offering a rich narrative within its walls.
Key Takeaways
- Casa Tam is a comprehensive renovation in Santiago, Chile.
- The project integrates existing layouts with new construction.
- A standing seam metal skin wraps the entire exterior.
- Interior design emphasizes visible material transitions.
- A new kiln room serves the owner's ceramics workshop.
Integrating Past and Present in Chile
The Casa Tam project is situated on the outskirts of Santiago, at the base of the Andes mountains. The original house had already undergone two previous expansions. Bravo's design strategy was not to demolish and rebuild, but to create a 'palimpsest'—a term often used to describe a manuscript where original writing has been erased and overwritten, yet traces of the earlier text remain.
This approach allowed the architect to work with the existing structural elements and spatial arrangements. The goal was to extend these fragments and connect them with axes from later interventions, forming a cohesive yet historically rich environment.
Project Fact
The Casa Tam renovation is located in Santiago, Chile, at the foothills of the Andes mountains.
Exterior Design and Landscape Integration
From the street, the house presents an urban facade, with its front lifted in a deliberate architectural gesture. In contrast, the rear of the property turns away from the mountains. The roofline follows the natural slope of the land, descending almost to the ground. This creates a semi-buried strip at the back, connecting the house directly to the garden.
This strategic move serves to anchor the building firmly to its site. It quietly reshapes how the home interacts with the surrounding natural landscape, making it feel deeply embedded in its environment.
"The renovation works with fragments of the original layouts, extending them and weaving them together with axes from later interventions to form a layered domestic landscape that openly carries its own history."
Functional Interior Layout
Inside, the architect's plan divides the space into two primary zones. The area facing the interior garden features an open, double-height living and dining room, alongside the main bedroom. This arrangement forms a central, shared domestic core, emphasizing communal living and natural light.
Towards the street, a more utilitarian wing houses the kitchen and the owner's ceramics workshop. This compact service area efficiently groups necessary functions. Above, two children's bedrooms are connected by a shared central studio, further reinforcing the concept of communal space through vertical layering.
Architectural Palimpsest
An architectural palimpsest refers to a building that has been altered, extended, or rebuilt over time, where traces of its previous forms remain visible. This concept celebrates the history of a structure rather than erasing it with new construction.
Structural Evolution and Materiality
The lower level of Casa Tam incorporates new reinforced concrete elements. These new structures stitch together the different construction systems that accumulated over the years. They act as a critical structural mediator, bridging various eras of the house's development.
The upper floor, however, uses a lightweight structure. This design choice respects the limitations of the original foundations, which were initially designed to support only a single story. This careful balance between heavy and light construction allows the house to expand without compromising its historical integrity.
- Lower Level: Reinforced concrete elements integrate past and present structures.
- Upper Level: Lightweight construction respects original foundation limits.
- Exterior Cladding: Standing seam metal skin provides a monolithic appearance.
Visible History and Modern Additions
Material transitions are intentionally visible throughout the interior of Casa Tam. Shifts between old and new surfaces are unified only by a coat of white paint. Openings carved through walls expose their original thickness and texture, visually narrating the house's past lives.
In stark contrast, the exterior of the house is wrapped entirely in a standing seam metal skin. This metal skin gives the volume a monolithic, almost abstract presence, effectively concealing the complex layers within. The uniform exterior provides a contemporary shell that unifies the disparate internal elements.
Material Contrast
The interior of Casa Tam highlights visible material transitions, while the exterior presents a monolithic metal skin, creating a strong contrast between internal history and external modernity.
The Kiln Room: A Signature Addition
The only entirely new addition to the facade appears in front of the main entrance: a kiln room. This room is specifically designed for the owner's ceramics workshop. Clad in wood and painted white, it stands slightly apart from the main house. This placement marks it as the latest chapter in the ongoing process of the house's transformation.
More than just an extension, the kiln room becomes a quiet signature, a plastic and programmatic trace of the most recent changes to the home. It symbolizes the continuous evolution and adaptation of Casa Tam, making it a living document of its own history.
The project successfully demonstrates how modern architecture can engage with existing structures, creating something new and functional while honoring the narrative embedded in older buildings. It stands as an example of thoughtful renovation that creates a unique and deeply personal domestic space.