DRAA's la dacha refuge overlooks the vast landscape of the chilean andes

among the woodlands overlooking chile’s vast ‘nevados de chillán’ volcanic landscape, DRAA sites la dacha refuge. the project is the result of a site-specific design that combines a functional mountain layout with high thermal efficiency. V-shaped in plan, the dwelling was oriented to follow the sun’s trajectory with large openings towards the north and west. the rooms gradate from the more public in the higher levels to the private in the lower levels, prioritizing an open plan of the top floor. the house was designed as a set of three overlapping volumes, each oriented toward different views and capturing sunlight at different moments throughout the day.

image by nico saieh

the design by DRAA follows a conceptually hybridized method of construction. a lightweight, highly insulated perimeter surrounds a thermally massive core. the entrance to the house opens to the middle level with a masonry stove, or ‘kachelofen,’ around which circulation is organized. the thick brick walls of the wood stove stores the required heat for the house. each day the stove requires only a single load of wood. this ancient technique, borrowed from that common in central europe, serves as a prototype for southern chile where wood consumption and pollution are becoming crucial issues.

image by nico saieh

while the interior of la dacha is clad in native lingue wood, the exterior expresses charred, locally-sourced conifer planks. the exterior cladding demonstrates the yakisugi method of wood preservation. the material is mounted as a ventilated façade, adding insulation and preventing the use of chemicals. as a result, la dacha follows passive design principles in a concentrated, highly insulated refuge that is nested over a pristine mountain landscape.

image by nico saieh

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

image by felipe camus

1/6