On a sloping hillside above the Paraná River, Argentina, a team of female architects from Wydział Architektury Politechniki Krakowskiej has designed a Tierra Serena villa immersed in nature. Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska and Sofia Dediulia created the house, which was shortlisted as a finalist in the La Juanita competition organized by the Terraviva platform.
The design of the Tierra Serena villa blends harmoniously with its surroundings. Natural materials were chosen for its creation, and the natural environment was also respected in the design.
visualization - Tierra Serena
designed by Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
solid falling with the slope
Villa Tierra Serena is a house with three levels, the highest of which is closest to the access road. It is there that the common spaces are planned - a living room with a lowered lounge area and a kitchen with a dining area. From this level you can also go out onto the terrace, which flows out of the interior thanks to sliding glass doors.
Cross-section - Tierra Serena
proj.: Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
Semi-private rooms - a guest room and a study- were designed on the second level of the villa. The lowest level is the most private part of the entire villa, giving a sense of asylum thanks to its location lower than the road level. Three bedrooms and a shared bathroom for the children were located there, as well as a separate apartment wing with a private bathroom dedicated to the parents.
plan - Tierra Serena
proj.: Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
The villa's terrace offers an outdoor kitchen and direct access to the pool. From there, one can follow a path towards the river. This makes the villa's exterior an extension of the natural environment. The view from above spreading out from the villa's level allows the villa to even build an emotional relationship with the river flowing below.
site plan - Tierra Serena
designed by Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
Earth walls and rainwater in the pool - eco-friendly solutions
The authors of the project took care to respect the environment on many levels. All existing trees on the plot were preserved. It was also planned to reuse the soil obtained during the leveling of the land. It is from it that the walls of the designed building will be created. Thanks to the technique of building the walls from rammed clay, the more it gives the impression of growing out of the ground.
solid shaping scheme - Tierra Serena
proj.: Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
sustainable solutions - Tierra Serena
design: Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
The warm, earthy tones of the villa's walls blend naturally with the wooden roof. The details were made of brick, recycled from materials obtained from an existing building on the plot. Such a solution not only expands the list of sustainable construction techniques used in the project, but also helps reduce the heat buildup.
The authors also analyzed insolation. To this end, they performed lighting efficiency simulations, which made it possible to layout the most optimal placement of openings and thus minimize the need for artificial lighting. To prevent the building from getting too hot, the villa uses Low-E glass, which has a low heat transfer coefficient.
insolation - Tierra Serena
proj.: Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
Another ecological solution used in the Tierra Serena project concerns the conscious use of water. It was planned to collect rainwater from the roof and direct it to a special trough, from which it goes to the pool.
This villa is more than a house - it is an architectural journey that celebrates the natural world. The building coexists with the surrounding landscape, seamlessly blurring the line between shelter and natural space and redefining the concept of habitation
- tell the authors.
visualization - Tierra Serena
proj.: Milena Pięta, Zuzanna Stanislawska, Sofia Dediulia
The project was created as part of the "La Juanita" competition organized by Terraviva, whose goal was to design a contemporary single-family residential development in the picturesque area of the Parana River in Argentina. The organizers' premise was to encourage architects to visualize a modern Argentine home for a family of four.
