Casa Fatia

 
The house makes several references to modern Brazilian architecture, even as it adds a new element with its complex prismatic geometry, generating a series of spatial illusions in the interiors: a trademark of the authors' special language.
The house addresses the universal issue of urban residues.
The changing nature of the urban context generates a number of odd residual sites, of great interest in that they pose difficult questions in terms of planning and program.
The site of this project is 3.7 m wide × 38.5 m long. The swimming pool on the upper floor is the main event in this space. It focuses the attention, turning the user into a voyeur while paying homage to the body, a Brazilian national obsession. The pool is structurally supported by the sidewalls, becoming a floating block above the living space. As the daylight changes, it functions as a filter to create different ripple effects on the water. At night, with the pool lights on, it functions as a large colored light fixture.
The project was conceived as a slice built on an urban leftover after the opening of a new road on the west side of the site. Space is defined by a series of non-orthogonal design decisions. The space folds and unfolds within the prismatic form, generating a series of spatial distortions which create an illusion of greater space on this narrow plot. A series of walls tilted at a 70-degree angle displace the gaze to further planes and achieve an illusion of greater space. The tilted ceilings create forced perspectives which distort and enrich spatial perceptions as the user perceives conflicting information from different viewpoints.
 

Fernando Rihl was trained at the Architectural Association in London (1998) and at UFRGS, Brazil (1989). He holds Master's degrees in Housing Studies and Environmental Issues and a Ph.D. in Daylight. Currently a Senior Lecturer at Chelsea College of Art and Design, he has worked in private practice in Brazil on residential projects and on developing set designs for films and television ads.
 

 
Christopher Procter was trained at the Architectural Association in London (1987) and Carnegie-Mellon University (1979), with external studies in Japan (1978) and at Arcosanti with Paolo Soleri. He has also gained architectural experience with U.S. offices such as Rick Mather Architects, Allies and Morrison, Sheppard Robson and Jesticos + Whiles.