Profiting from the natural landscape of Punta Pite, a rugged stretch along the coastline in central Chile, is the stunning Engawa House. Designed by architects Santiago Valdivieso and Stefano Rolla, the residence is dramatically elevated from the rocky landscape, yielding unobstructed views of its natural surroundings and freeing up the space underneath to accommodate a terrace and a swimming pool.
True to its name, the home’s design centers around an engawa – a veranda-like feature found in traditional Japanese architecture – that runs along the edges of the entire home. This wooden edging strip, along with the interior spaces, can be exposed or hidden according to the client’s whims by opening or shutting the slatted wood panels installed on three of its four facades. The home consists of a sun-lit, ocean-facing open plan living, dining and kitchen area, as well as three bedrooms and baths. An outdoor staircase leads to a rooftop terrace.
With the interior volumes encased in glass and protected by the wooden screens, Engawa House is far from a static presence in the territory; it’s a shining example of how architecture can dynamically engage with its surroundings. “The idea of the project is to generate a house that allows to work both as a refuge and as the opposite; a panorama,” the architects state.
Photography © Cristobal Palma for Valdivieso/Rolla