ROW studio tiles cuvier 83 building with houndstooth facade

cuvier 83 by ROW studio

ROW studio recently remodeled the facade and rooftop terrace of a 1950s building in mexico city.

after years of neglect and inconsiderate interventions cuvier 83 needed an urgent makeover. the site is located in the centric mid density neighborhood of anzures in mexico city and is surrounded by two and three level mid century houses and buildings with tree lined avenues.

 
the structure that started as a house had become unrecognizable after at least five interventions by different architects in several periods of time to the point, that with added floor levels, it was transformed into a rental apartments complex with four units.  even though the extra density made sense in such a neighborhood, the construction never truly embraced its new identity becoming a hybrid, half house, half building, that was completely alien to its street.

before and after

ROW’S intervention had two goals in mind, on one hand to give it a proper scale and identity as a condominium and on the other to seamlessly fit its surroundings. the first step was to completely demolish the existing balconies and façade that had even become a structural hazard for the construction. after replacing the structural elements we built a new set of balconies that gave a new sense of lightness and scale to the place.

the flaring walls and ceiling of the balconies recede into the glass doors of the apartment reducing the perceived weight of the structural elements while framing views from the inside and outside. all the surfaces of these outside spaces are covered with cement tiles made out of a revisited version of the ´houndstooth´ pattern designed in collaboration with graphic designer and illustrator christian pacheco. this repetitive pattern so commonly used on fabrics and fashion design acquires real textile qualities as it follows the flaring surfaces of the balconies. when the angles of the surfaces don’t match the continuity of the patterned tiles these are substituted with black pieces that act as seems that fit together the opposing planes. the application of the tiles on the ceiling was possible with a special paste developed specially on laboratory by perdura for the project.

the railings of the balconies where designed by industrial designer victor aleman with 45° tilted metal poles that match the pattern of the tiles virtually fusing together the two images and keeping the continuity of the patter as uninterrupted as possible. the same solution is applied for the outside lighting with the use of industrial t-8 led lamp tubes that become almost invisible at daytime to later take a leading role during the night.

detail of the houndstooth tiles by christian pacheco

rooftop terrace

on top of the apartments the shared rooftop terrace reproduces the ´houndstooth´ design of the tiles as a large scale graphic executed with a cast quartz anti slipping floor system in white, gray and black. the same lines of the pattern are continued trough the surrounding walls in opposite and angles whenever they touch the floor pattern. functional elements like ventilation shafts, tubes and ladders where left in their crude state to emphasis the urban condition of the site, where water tanks, buildings of all shapes and sizes and fifty years old trees conforms the line of vision.

diagram

tiled facade

apartment layout

apartment plans

project info
architects: row studio + ana soberanes
álvaro hernández félix, nadia hernández félix, alfonso maldonado ochoa, ana soberanes santin.
use: multi unit dwelling
client: private
design team: omar muñoz
furniture: sillas alma by ariel rojo
metalwork design: victor aleman
tiles design: christian pacheco
tiles paste and waterproofing:  perdura
special coatings: sylpyl industries
paint: comex
built area: 5381 sq. ft. (500 sq. mts.)
completition date: august 2013
photographer: sófocles hernández