This wonderful warm-weather home in El Salvador, designed by the country’s Cincopatasalgato architecture firm, takes great advantage of the tropical climate surrounding it. The architects and homeowners have collaborated to create a residence that truly captures the essence of beachside living, with an exterior dominated by a dune-grass roof and indoor spaces that are actually completely open to the daily ebb and flow of the natural world. The house still retains its usability at the same time, with an entirely separate, more traditional wing of private rooms impenetrable to rain and wind. Out from under the roof, a large pool and carefully-placed palm plants add to the suggestion of long-term vacation living. Though it’s still a home in the literal sense, it functions adeptly as an all-day, all-night space for hosting and enjoying the lush climate of El Salvador.
The decor of the home’s living areas is bright and creative, with splashes of yellow and blue. Most of the furniture is white, blending with the spaces’ flooring to create a contrast with the exposed thatching of the vaulted roof. Throughout the first floor, plain white walls are diversified with artistic wood patterns painted in hues all across the rainbow spectrum. Lighting also plays a part in the atmosphere of the living and dining spaces, especially during the evening when low lighting calms the bright space down. Finally, small patches of natural vegetation area placed at key points of the home, spicing up the space and providing drainage points for the sloped roof. The combination of it all results in a thoroughly contemporary home that is seamlessly integrated into an outdoor lifestyle.
From the outside, the only element of this building that suggests a traditional home is the profile of its sloping roof; Cincopatasalgato took great care to make their creation thoroughly unique and unbound by traditional exterior concepts. The result is a house with a second floor supported on wooden stilts, leaving the entire first floor as an open-air living space.
The most significant part of the dwelling is a large open main-floor space, arranged into a living room, kitchen, and other recreational areas. Set under a decidedly tropical rough-hatched roof supported by logs, the living areas are accented by bright fittings and high ceilings.
In addition to the main open living room, an additional living space is set under the high ceilings in the form of an enclosed loft, providing a communal space for bad-weather days. This second living room utilizes white furnishings and plenty of glass area to make sure that it feels integrated into the rest of the home’s public spaces despite its more closed architecture.
The far end of the living room serves a number of purposes, with an eating table and pathways to the kitchen and loft.
The resort-like residence’s kitchen comes in two parts, with a casual bar set off the living room and a dedicated cooking space behind a brightly-patterned wooden partition. The yellow stove hood and light wooden cabinetry compliment furniture and wall coverings all over the public space of the home, so even this set-aside area isn’t really isolated.
Behind the living room, between the kitchen and the home’s second wing, lies an indoor/outdoor patch of low-lying plants. The slope of the thatched roof directs water from infrequent rains into this garden, allowing it to thrive without active human intervention.
Through another colorfully-lit entryway lies an entirely different type of space, where the private rooms of the home are kept. In this wing, the color scheme changes from bright neon hues to subdued and classy tones of white and grey.
Like the garden area in the main living area, this patch of plant life is fed by a snug hole in the ceiling, providing sunlight, fresh air and occasional water while keeping occupants mostly safe from the elements.
Cincopatasalgato
Photos: Jason Bax Photography
