PIRIHUEICO

HOUSE

ALEJANDRO
A R AV E N A

-PRITZKER
PRIZE 2016
ABOUT THE
ARCHITECT
Alejandro Gastón Aravena Mori (born 22
June 1967) is a Chilean architect and
executive director of the
firm Elemental S.A. He won the Pritzker
Prize architecture in 2016, and has designed
the "Siamese Towers", a workshop building
at the school of architecture and faculty
buildings at the Pontifical Catholic
University of Chile. He designed the Colegio
Huelquén Montessori; the Casa para una
Escultora (House for a Sculptor) and many
more.
CHALLENGES FACED
The Pirihueico House had to be built at a
remote landscape in the most southern
part of Chile. The place had a volcanic
site, 4.000 mm of rain every year, strong
winds from the north and east, views
towards the lake (east) and the forest
(west), considerations of the difficulty of
bringing materials to this remote place.
THE PLAN
•As the weather conditions were
very extreme, the plan was to take
less risk as possible and that's why
they began from the double sloped
conventional roof. Slowly, they
moved on, deforming it, looking
for the views, avoiding the winds,
using the frame windows as the
arriving or starting points of the
slopes. 
THE PLAN
This acceptance-rejection logic of
the operations, explains the
geometry of the second floor; the
first floor on the contrary, is a dry
resistance box, able to deal with
earthquakes and with the solitude
this type of houses have to deal
with, great part of the year.
MATERIALS USED
• The house is mainly constructed by using wood
and stone which came from clearance of the site
• The house has a beautiful stone work on its
exterior walls which is complimented by use of
pine wood(a stiff type of wood making it very
durable).
• Glass is also extensively used to
achieve the more "open" feel in the house and
guarantees the exquisite views are visible no
matter where the people are in the house.
• Stone work is the most durable, strong and
weather resistant, thanks to the natural
durability of the material.
A LOOK AT PIRIHUEICO HOUSE
- B Y M O H A I B M U S H TA Q