office building in rural paraguay is topped by 'smiling' roof that collects rainwater

office building in the middle of nowhere 

minimo común arquitectura built an office building within an agricultural and livestock area in the rural city of cururguaty, paraguay. addressing the puzzling question of how to create a project in the middle of nowhere, the architects formed an earth brick structure, with semi-transparent walls and an impressive ‘floating’ roof that catches both the wind and the water.  

all images courtesy of daniel ojeda

a ‘floating’ roof that protects workers

minimo común arquitectura (find more here) positioned the office building on a platform, elevated 1.5 meters from the ground, in order to protect users from the local animals and insects. then, the architects formed the floating roof to provide shade, ensuring that users will be comfortable even on the warmest days. thanks to its curved shape, the roofing also directs the winds and collects rainwater, serving as a safe shelter for all workers. this curvature was achieved with the help of wires, fastened on the IPN profiles. the resulting structure appears to be ‘smiling’ up at the sky.

made entirely out of earth

the entire structure is composed of earth bricks which were made on-site with the use of a press. the architects have also formed a parasol built of the same material as the walls, of soil, but this time without cement. this allowed them to erase it with water, leaving only the mortar lines, as would happen with the passage of time.

taking advantage of the curve of the catenary, the rainwater is collected, allowing it to be reused. it is pumped to the highest point of the plates and then distributed, thus cooling the entire roof. this constant circuit of microclimate generating cool and humidity for humans and plants will end up taking over the whole project, with the passage of time.

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project info:

name: oficinas nordeste curuguaty
designer: mínimo común arquitectura

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: myrto katsikopoulou | designboom