Modern Diamond House by Xten Architecture

Diamond House is built against a very steep slope with minimal access and very little space available. A complex set of rules determines the height, width, depth and relationship to the retaining walls of the project. Given these constraints, Xten architecture adopted a multifaceted architectural strategy to develop this small volume.

First, they built a base geometry that adjusts to the slope and the rules, extending to the side yards. The extension located neatly between the existing structure and the slope for inflected space around and creates outdoor spaces that could not have existed before. The geometry of the building corresponds to the interior, like the corner of the upper deck and accommodates leaving a desk at work in the north window and a series of wall panels that fold over the building to create the railing and enclosure of the terrace.

Then, the material used was developed to relate this new extension with the landscape and reduce visual scale of the building. The pattern of the facade is created from natural elements taken from the site, abstracted, scaled and sorted along the building during the 3D modeling. Different patterns and scales were being researched, of which several tests were made 1:1 with laser cutters and CNC routers on aluminum, zinc, wood and cement board.

The fiber cement panels SWISSPEARL 1 cm thick that are in the building were chosen as both relate to the masonry of the site. Sunlight enhances these etched lines, jagged edges and the delicate features of fiber cement panels, which direct light, are as thin as a ceramic vase. While in the afternoon, the panels become flat and the total volume emerge, appearing as a perforated lantern light with this pattern illuminating the canyon.

Modern Diamond House by Xten Architect (2)