Laredo 17

Info

Location:
Condesa, Mexico City

Year:
2003

Area:
2,079 m2

Status:
Built

Description

Laredo 17 is the result of a reinterpretation of the concept of the vecindad and urban life in contemporary Mexico.

The four blocks on each floor which house a series of lofts with different schemes, correct the irregularity of the perimeter of the property, converting it into a cube that makes up the central patio and allows for a relationship with the fifth façade. The patio is proposed asa private courtyard that all units overlook, thus promoting a healthy exchange between neighbors.

Each block is distributed differently. The two front walls emphasize their horizontality toward the exterior in the two façades that face the street, highlighting them through the use of concrete and aluminum strips. On the interior, on the other hand, this same horizontality is created by bridges and grated side rails that connect the different regular bodies. Some of the windowed balconies, projected facing the street toward the void, are emphasized in the interior.

The project presents three vertical elements. One in the center, in the heart of the patio: a glass block that wraps around the elevator. The other two concrete elements frame the entrance from the ground floor up to the top floor, enhancing the clear transition between the public space and the private courtyard. If on the exterior the project is discrete and simple, on the inside the design is more daring, with a composition.

Credits

Architectural project:
Jacobo Micha Mizrahi

Collaborators:
Ernesto Rossell Zanotelli, Luis R. González Villamil, Aldo Moreno Gamboa

Structural engineering:
Colinas de Buen

Construction:
Archetonic / Jacobo Micha, Omar Parra, Rodolfo Rubio

Installations:
Instalaciones 2000 / Rafael Gasman

Photography:
Luis Gordoa, Tomás Casademunt