The term biophilia refers to the human need to establish a close connection with nature to promote and ensure health and emotional well-being. Biophilia involves creating spaces that respect life processes and foster a balance between the built environmentandthenaturalworld.
Akeyaspectofensuringthewell-beingof the population is facilitating access to nature within urban settings, integrating vegetation, and respecting the local ecosystem.
This approach materializes through sustainable construction systems and the use of low-impact natural materials, creating healthy environments that enhance quality of life. Additionally, it encourages biodiversity, supporting the presence of pollinators throughout the urbanlandscape.
Our design intention is to promote biophiliaandpositionthecityofLobosasa reference model, driving a transformation thatinspiresthecreationofabiophiliccity system, forming a green belt in the provinceofBuenosAires.
Water serves as a structuring element, turning the stream into a new center of activity.
Through a diverse and dynamic public space, we aim to foster genuine social integration by creating intentional pathways that generate opportunities for connection with the environment and its meanings.
We want this journey to spark curiosity, exploration, and dynamism, inviting citizenstorediscovertheirrelationship natureintheirdailylives.
LOBOS BIOPHILIC CITY
SITE LAYOUT
The term biophilia refers to the human need to establish a close connection with nature in order to promote and ensure health and emotional well-being. Biophilia is the ability to create spaces that respect nature and vital processes.
An essential aspect to ensure the health and well-being of the population is to facilitate and guarantee access to nature within the urban environment itself. It is integrated with and respects the natural surroundings. It is carried out with construction systems and materials of low ecological impact, generating healthy environments that promote the well-being of people. It also fosters the presence of pollinators throughout the city's landscape.
CONCEPTUAL MEMORY
GREEN AS THE DOMINANT ELEMENT
Our design intention is to spread biophilia, making Lobos the one to inspire this new way of living and thus create a system of biophilic cities that acts as a green belt in the Buenos Aires province.
Water as the structural element—transforming the stream into a new centrality. Making public spaces diverse and dynamic. Ensuring that the public space fosters real social integration. Creating an induced route where opportunities for connection emerge, tied to significant locations. The goal is to create a path that is not monotonous or predictable.
URBAN PLAN
Scale 1:750
MODEL WORK
Scale 1:750
LIBRARY PARK MEMORIES OF WATER
Based on the site study conducted in the city of Lobos, we recognize water as a key element in the decision-making process—water as a symbol of nature and biophilia. The stream becomes the city's new central axis, integrating with the libraryprojectandpublicspace.
Our intention is to create a public space that is ever-changing and dynamic, fostering a sense of belonging among the inhabitants of Lobos and its neighboring cities.
Theprojectaimsforexpansion,positioning Lobos as a landmark city, a model for otherstofollow.Thosewhomovethrough this city will constantly find reasons to connectwiththespace,nativenature,and waterinvariousways.
We believe that connection, care, and awareness of natural resources are essential. For this reason, the Library Park "MemoriesofWater"featuresaculturaland educational program dedicated to raising awareness about the protection and preservationofournaturalresources.
WaterasaStructuringElement
Transformingthestreamintoanewcenter ofactivity.Creatingadiverseanddynamic public space that fosters genuine social integration. Establishing an intentional pathway where opportunities for connectionemergebasedonthemeaning of the place. Designing a route that inspirescuriosityanddynamism.
FloodablePark
The project incorporates the sponge city concept into public park design, creating strategicallyplannedareastonaturallyand efficiently manage water. These zones serve as open spaces capable of temporarily holding water during heavy rainfall or floods, acting as buffers that reduce strain on urban drainage systems andmitigatefloodrisks.
During dry periods or lower water flow, these areas remain empty and functional, serving as recreational spaces that blend harmoniouslyintotheurbanlandscape.
Floodable Park
The project incorporates the sponge city concept into public park design, creating strategically planned areas to naturally and efficiently manage water. These zones serve as open spaces capable of temporarily holding water during heavy rainfall or floods, acting as buffers that reduce strain on urban drainage systems and mitigate flood risks.
During dry periods or lower water flow, these areas remain empty and functional, serving as recreational spaces that blend harmoniously into the urban landscape.
URBAN PARK SPONGES
STREAM
HIGHWATERLEVEL WATERSPONGE
LOWWATERLEVEL RECREATIONSPACE
ECO-FRIENDLYFOOTPRINT
ARCHITECTURAL VIEW
Scale 1:200
CARBON DIOXIDE STUDY
Building Volume
● Gross Construction Area: 6,775m²
Structure
● Column Volume: 210m³
● Load-Bearing Wall Volume: 335m³
● Floor Volume: 678m³
Substructure
● Foundation Volume: 300m³
Envelope
● Facade Area: 2,844m²
● Opaque Facade Area: 1,760m²
● Glazed Facade Area: 1,084m²
Where is carbon dioxide emitted?
Structure
Substructure
Facade
Total Carbon: 564 tCO₂
Total Carbon per m² of GFA (Gross Floor Area): 83 kgCO₂/m²
What is this CO₂ equivalent to?
Train Distance: 40,285,834 km
Car Distance: 5,423,093 km
Airplane Distance: 1,978,953 km
ARCHITECTURE AND LANDSCAPE HOTEL IN SALTA
For this project, the fundamental premise is the design of a hotel in the mountains of Salta that alsointegratesamuseum,offeringauniqueand enrichingexperienceforvisitors.
From a design perspective, I aimed for the architecture and materiality of the project to establish a harmonious dialogue with the surroundings,allowingthebuildingtomergewith the landscape and become a natural extension ofit.
To achieve this integration, I chose to use rammed earth construction, an ancestral technique that compacts soil to create solid and durable walls. This method not only ensures a robust and thermally efficient structure but also forms a direct connection with the land, as the materials come from the very soil where the buildingstands.
Rammed earth provides a natural aesthetic that evolves over time, aging in harmony with the landscape and avoiding foreign or intrusive elementsinthemountainousenvironment.
The use of rammed earth is not just a technical decision but also a conceptual one. Earth, as a building material, represents a way to reinterpret the natural environment and transform it into architecture. In this sense, the project is based ontheideaoftakinganelementfromnatureand turning it into a habitable space, allowing the building to emerge from the landscape as if it hadalwaysbeenpartofit.
Thisapproachnotonlyensuresvisualintegration with the surroundings but also enhances the project’s sustainability by reducing its carbon footprint and minimizing the use of industrial materials.
Therelationshipbetweenthebuildingandnature goes beyond its materiality—it extends to its form and positioning on the site. The design seeks to blend with the terrain, adapting to the natural curves of the mountain and respecting the existing topography. Instead of imposing itself on the landscape, the hotel and museum become an extension of it, creating spaces that feel excavated from the earth, as if they had beensculptedbynatureitself.
Ground Floor
ARCHITECTURALSECTION
Scale1:200
ARCHITECTURALVIEW
Scale1:200
INTERIOR IMAGE
BUILDING IN MICROCENTRO
Biofilia
As a design process, the decision was made to create a building that contrasts withtherealityofBuenosAires'downtownwhilefosteringasenseofwell-being forbothusersandpassersby.
