The use of pigmented concrete in Latin American architecture is growing - and influencing contemporary architectural expression. This can be seen in recent built works ranging from the INES Innovation Center designed by Pezo von Ellrichshausen in Chile to the Teotitlán del Valle Community Cultural Center by PRODUCTORA in Mexico.
While the addition of pigments to concrete is often associated with an aesthetic purpose and has been implemented in various public and institutional buildings, the truth is that it has also been used in houses and residences within the region to highlight specific features and integrate a volumetric design within their context and environment.
Below, we present a selection of houses distributed across the Latin American territory that use pigmented concrete to highlight certain features of their morphologies, blend with their surrounding landscape, and convey diverse sensations to their inhabitants.
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Colombia
Lintel House / Palafito Arquitectura
"The search for color was carried out in the central concrete laboratory, testing more than 3 types of sand and 16 pigment combinations whose proportions were varied in the second decimal, until the desired tonality was achieved. The concrete used corresponded to a self-compacting concrete with shrinkage control, including a macro synthetic fiber to minimize material cracking (4 kg/m3). Likewise, the concrete in its composition carried an anti-foaming additive to minimize the generation of bubbles on the surface. The pouring of the cover plate and the hanging beams was carried out in a single day. This was done with the idea of eliminating construction joints."
Learn more about this project here.
23 House / Arquitectura en Estudio
“Materials were chosen looking for durability and easy maintenance, due to the house not being permanently inhabited. Ochre-tinted concrete built by using a timber formwork offers texture and coziness to the spaces. All the floors were built in natural sandstone, unifying the house's aesthetic and making it comfortable for walking barefoot. The façade is composed of mobile panels in teak wood screens, which allow the house to close up completely when not in use and open up towards the view when inhabited.”
Learn more about this project here.
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México
Real de los Reyes Residential Complex / Miguel de la Torre Arquitectos
"The design of the facade of the complex aims to be unique in the area, without compromising the surroundings and its essence. It's made of orange pigmented concrete, which subtly conveys the passage of time in accordance with the space it occupies. Its lattice with circular perforations lends a sense of lightness to the facade and enables a discreet connection with the exterior. The distinctive color of the construction makes it a focal point while moving through the area, serving as a hallmark of its identity and culture.”
Learn more about this project here.
Tejocote House / González Muchow Arquitectura
“The warmth and simplicity in both the interior and exterior spaces are a constant in the atmosphere of the house. The pigmented concrete in its tepetate color shades gives a more welcoming character to the spaces it surrounds, matching natural light and the landscape. The use of discreet materials causes light and space to be the protagonists of the house. However, elementary details such as solid wood in furniture and ironwork; as well as brick floors and pasta mosaics, complement this sensation of serenity that the spaces transmit.”
Learn more about this project here.
Stone House / Taller Gabriela Carrillo
“The use of a single material, colored concrete, a product of the mixture of cement and local sand with different strategies in its final finishes to become almost wood in walls with a clear plastered finish and washed and non-slip floors, with low light reflection but also with Low thermal absorption to be able to walk without shoes. The wood from the formwork was reused to make lambrines and light structures, as well as the stone produced by the same excavations to define terraces and retaining walls. Intelligent systems of solar panels for the pool, photovoltaics for electricity, and water treatment systems make the house practically autonomous from the local infrastructure.”
Learn more here.
Bugambilias House / Taller Mexicano de Arquitectura
"Formally, the house aims to form a gray concrete basement on the ground floor on which a monolithic volume of pigmented concrete rests to generate that contrast between the 2 levels. The use of raw materials is something characteristic and that intentionally seeks the aging of these with the passage of time."
Learn more here.
Sonoma House / Roca Arquitectos
“Since the location is away from the San José del Cabo electrical infrastructure, an off-grid solar energy system supplies the daily needs of the owners. During the work process, color samples were prepared on the concrete in order to match it with the desert environment and the existing topography of the land; The structure seems to emerge from the ground itself and blends in with the rocky landscape at Punta Gorda hill.”
Learn more here.
Casa Lyons / Co Lateral
"The concrete walls blended with red clay evoke the typical shades of the region and merge with the glorious sunsets. Thus, the interior and exterior spaces blend organically, establishing a delicate harmony."
Learn more here.
CVC House / Estudio MMX
“The use of red pigmented concrete as a structural and finishes system and allows to generate pergolas, slabs, beams, and homogeneous walls, that emphasizes the integral nature of the project.”
Learn more here.
Volta House / Ambrosi I Etchegaray
"A practical and economical circumstance determined the materiality of this house. Foundation Casa Wabi is located nearby, a place where clay is fired, and where at the time of the construction there were leftover bricks available for recycling. So, the idea of using brick vaults built on top of a concrete structure pigmented with clay colour emerged. A simple construction method would allow us to fulfill the tight construction schedule. On the other hand, the vaults, along with the reed lattices on their sides, make the wind flow profusely in the closed spaces, while water refreshes the exteriors. All of this produces an atmosphere of warmth and freshness at the same time."
Learn more here.
Casa Bruma / Fernanda Canales + Claudia Rodríguez
“The house is made up of four materials: apparent black concrete, wood, stone, and glass. Each block adapts to the topography and makes the volumes appear and disappear in the landscape. The color and the stony condition of the house help to give the project a timeless character. The access is the point where this becomes more palpable since it is a semi-hidden route where fragments of the blocks appear that lead the user in a slow and stepped way to the patio, where the blind blocks are discovered and open to the transparent steps that connect the main areas. These steps open both to the patio and the exterior landscape and reveal a series of views that somehow penetrate the protected area of the courtyard. Thus, while the patio closes to the outside, it also anticipates what is on the other side of the different blocks.”
Learn more here.
NICTÉ-HA House / Di Frenna Arquitectos
"Nicté-Ha House emerges from the idea of creating a play of volumes crafted from concrete matched to the earthy tones of the area, mixed with the very stone ingrained in it, known as the 'Piedra de potrero' or 'Pasture Stone.'"
"[...] Throughout, the intention is to ensure that the warmth of wood has a strong presence as a contrast against the materiality of the rest, crafting a home with the majority of finishes in a distinctly artisanal manner. The 'piedra de potrero' is roughly placed, using 'enduelado with very fine bands' for the casting of the beige concrete walls, and local wood carpentry to ensure a good comportment. This is juxtaposed with highly precise materials on the exterior, such as steel beams, and on the interior, with kitchen furnishings."
Learn more here.
Casa Moulat / CCA Centro de Colaboración Arquitectónica
“Casa Moulat, located in the Amanali Golf Club subdivision represents the use of bare concrete. The project is based on the integration of the construction into the natural landscape and its contrast with the artificial landscape created for the golf course. It is a construction that explores the duality of open space and closed space, of interior and exterior.”
[…] “Two bodies of bare earth-coloured concrete laid on the foundation house the private spaces of the building. Both bodies are connected by means of two gigantic concrete beams that support a large structured wooden roof with large frames. The main space of the house opens completely through huge windows, turning the interior space into a covered terrace.”
Learn more here.
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Brazil
FG House / Bernardes Arquitetura
“In this residence, the visual and physical limits between interior and exterior are diluted through design integration strategies. The same material as the deck (basalt) and lining of the balcony (modular in slatted wood) are used in the interior, and the living, dining, and gourmet areas become a balcony when their frames are fully open to the pool and garden.
In the social volume, from a material point of view, the palette in natural tones brings comfort and well-being, where the reddish-colored pigmented concrete gables, wood in the ceiling and panels, and basalt on the floor and fireplace stand out.”
Learn more here.
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Chile
Raem House / Pezo von Ellrichshausen
“The reinforced concrete construction, with its yellow pigmentation, appears as a monolithic plate amidst broken stones and native bushes.”
Learn more here.
* The texts are descriptions provided by the authors of the projects.
This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: Color in Architecture presented by Sto.
Material, texture, sheen, and color are inseparable – the identity of a building becomes clear in an Architect’s choices of how these come together. Considering the lifecycle of a building from design, occupation, and legacy, we understand that achieving the right expression is tantamount to the success of a building. Sto’s innovative materials and data-driven color system complement design ambitions with technical knowledge and rigorous testing, to offer possibilities, accuracy, and longevity when Building in Color.
Produced by Sto, the short documentary ‘Building in Colour’ is a cinematic exploration into the role of materials and color in architecture, taking the work of Stirling Prize-winning architect Michael Wilford CBE (1938 – 2023) as its starting point.
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