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Plan B Creates a Safe House in Medellin

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A big open sun trap of a living space is at the heart of this passive-house house-warming design from Plan-B Arquitectos. Huge concrete pillars soak up the warmth of the sun coming in this gigantic skylight and then release their warmth on into the evening.

The M-House is sited on a hillside outside the city of Medellín, Columbia.”The house is folded toward the rear of the lot to avoid a large area of filled land where it was not feasible to build” say the architects. “The house spreads through the modulation of cube rooms that allows all the main spaces to enjoy the distant landscape and also to coil on itself to define a backyard and a private and climatically controlled area”.

The roofs will be planted with native grasses that form a continuation of the hillside vegetation.

Green roofs are energy-efficient because they modulate seasonal temperature swings of hot and cold, by cooling the house against the hot sun in summer and insulating from the cold in winter.

A series of round skylights are set into the roof delivering natural light and warmth to interior walk-in closets.

An assortment of inward-facing orthogonal modules create a small courtyard setting, for a feeling of security and protection.

The narrow profile allows light on both sides for a warm interior. A natural corridor allows passage entirely around the interior compound of buildings set in the courtyard.

The dining room and living room are connected to the kitchen and an outdoor terrace, while the corridors connecting the rooms act as a chain of triangular rooms that also enjoy the patio.

The inside track of corridors creates sense of protected and private space, a reassuring defense against a sometimes dangerous world.