S-AR’s box house provides affordable living accommodation in mexico
photo by alejandro cartagena
all images courtesy of stacion-ARquitectura

 

 

 

in northern mexico, local practice S-AR (stación-ARquitectura) has designed a family home as part of an ongoing community project that aims to provide the region with affordable living accommodation. the scheme has been developed under the supervision of S-AR’s non-profit organization comunidad vivex, a society that aims to bring architecture and its design processes to low-income families and marginalized communities.

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

 

 

 

as part of the initiative, families who have been able to secure land to build on, are offered support from comunidad vivex in the form of building materials and architectural assistance. in fact, the completion of this two-storey home was led by the head of the family – a 32 year old construction worker from the outskirts of monterrey.

 

built on a plot of standard dimensions, 7 meters by 15 meters, the dwelling is constructed using a series of stacked concrete blocks, while walls are made from a combination of plywood and glass frames. conceived as a large cuboid that contains smaller boxes, shared and flexible living accommodation is found at ground floor level, with private sleeping quarters positioned above.

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photos by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

s-ar stacion-arquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
photo by alejandro cartagena

 

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S-AR stación-ARquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
 
S-AR stación-ARquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
 
S-AR stación-ARquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
 
S-AR stación-ARquitectura comunidad vivex box house casa caja designboom
 

project info:

 

name: casa caja / box house
area: 110 sqm
location: general zuazua, mexico
status: complete
contributor: alejandra rivero
photography: alejandro cartagena