bernardo bustamante's cantilevering house emerges from ecuador's andes

ecuador’s ‘casa san pablo del lago’

Bernardo Bustamante Arquitectos realizes this ‘Casa San Pablo del Lago’ SPL house as a retreat to inspire a connection with the landscape of Ecuador. Emerging from the slopes of San Pablo Lake, the dwelling overlooks the community of Pijal — a place populated primarily by indigenous Otavaleña people. From its sloping site, the mountains and volcanoes which make up the North Ecuadorian Andes stand in full view, creating a grand frame around the scenic lake below.

a house emerging from the mountain

Quito-based studio Bernardo Bustamante Arquitectos (see more here) designs its SPL house as an object embedded into the landscape, which descends down toward the lake. With half of the house buried into the ground, this singular volume projects lightly over the slope, cantilevering a dizzying twelve meters (nearly 40 feet).

The team elaborates: ‘The large cantilever determined the resolution of the project in terms of the structural system. The structure is composed of two large parts: one made of heavy concrete anchored to the ground, from which a habitable cantilevered steel beam is attached.

The architectural volume contains the entire program; the access is located under the cantilever along with a vertical circulation. This element connects the two floors and is placed in the center of the floor plan to solve the public and private zoning of the project.‘

bernardo bustamante creates an Immersion among the andes

The Bernardo Bustamante Arquitectos-designed house is accessed from beneath the cantilever by vertical circulation. The main level of the house is divided between its public and private programming. The private area, organized toward the hill-side, hosts three equally sized bedrooms with two full bathrooms at each end.

Meanwhile, the living spaces are oriented toward San Pablo Lake. This gathering area floats above the landscape and is glazed on all three sides, lending an immersive experience within its Andean context.

The design team continues: ‘The spectacular nature of the project is undeniable. A work of rigorous construction that stands out defiantly on the hillside to be seen and admired like an inhabitable sculpture. The objective is not only to be notable from the Lakeshores but to also appreciate the beauty of its interior, that idyllic landscape of water and mountains.’