Guararema House / Terra E Tuma Arquitetos Associados

Architects: Terra e Tuma Arquitetos Associados
Area: 657 ft²
Year: 2018
Photographs: Pedro Kok
Lead Architects: Danilo Terra, Fernanda Sakano, Juliana Terra e Pedro Tuma
Landscaping: Gabriella Ornaghi e Bianca Vasone Arquitetura da Paisagem
Mud Walls: Terra Compacta
City: Guararema
Country: Brazil

Guararema House, by Terra e Tuma Arquitetos Associados, sits on a 20,845 m² rural site in Guararema, Brazil, with 15,000 m² reserved for preservation. Located on the site’s highest point, the 60 m² house faces east and west, offering views of native forests at sunrise and sunset. Inspired by the culata yovai typology, it features two enclosed blocks separated by an open central area, combining the living room and kitchen into a spacious balcony. Bedrooms, a bathroom, and storage are in the closed blocks. Built with Stabilized Rammed Earth (SRE) walls for durability, the structure includes metal beams and extended tiles to shield exterior walls from rain, while adjustable frames allow flexible use of the outdoor space.

Guararema House / Terra e Tuma Arquitetos Associados

The house is situated in the rural area of Guararema on a 20,845 m² lot along the banks of the Paraíba do Sul River, with 15,000 m² designated as a permanent preservation area.

The 60 m² building is located on the highest part of the land, with its main openings facing east and west, providing views of the native and riparian forests at dawn and dusk. The central span houses the living room and kitchen, seamlessly integrating with the outdoor area to form a large balcony. The closed blocks, featuring smaller openings, contain the bedrooms, bathroom, service area, and storage.

The building adopts a rural housing typology known as culata yovai[1], which consists of “[….] a construction with two opposed closed blocks, with a space between them covered and hollow. Enclosed areas can house both bedrooms, a living room, a storage room, or, in the most recent configurations, the kitchen. The central space has a varied and flexible use, both for work and for living, being a meeting place and a place of passage, constituting a transition either between a “room” and another or between one side and the other of the external areas” (BAROSSI, 2005, v. 2, p. 4)

The context and scale of the building allowed for the use of a rammed earth construction system for all walls. These walls are thick, heavy, and massive, constructed gradually, and have a smooth texture that reveals each compacted layer. Although this technique is ancient, it was implemented here using a modernized approach. To enhance durability, the Stabilized Rammed Earth (SRE) technique was applied, incorporating cement into the original soil mixture to mitigate potential water damage.

Tiles and metal beams rest on the structure, with their overhangs shielding the exterior masonry from direct rain exposure. The frames enclose the house and can close tightly against the weather or unfold outward, creating temporary rooms that extend into the surrounding landscape.

Note:

As described by Antonio Carlos Barossi in his doctoral thesis, this typology is used “in particular in Paraguay, where it is considered a typical solution for the country, and where reminiscences can be found even in the urban area. It is also reported in Bolivia, northern Argentina, and southwestern Brazil” (BAROSSI, 2005, v. 2, p. 3).