journal
Photography: Gustavo Quiroz, Hugo Tirso Domínguez , César Belio
10 / 10 / 2025
HW Studio's latest project was born from the silent memory of those who inhabit it. Here, shade is a promise of calm and protection. In Puerto Vallarta, Casa Tao seeks to respond to a way of life.
"We would like to feel that we live inside a Japanese museum." For Gustavo and Cynthia, the family home should be a space where time slows down, where light filters in softly, where silence becomes tangible — as in a Japanese museum.
In a neighbourhood without striking landscapes, Casa Tao stands out. A tree-lined square offering shade and some coolness guided the project's design. To avoid large glass surfaces that could intensify heat, the HW Studio team proposed an oblique, angular relationship between the house and the square, allowing the presence of this public space to be felt without the building being fully exposed to intense sunlight.
The act of inhabiting is framed indirectly, as if the house were observing the world diagonally and modestly, letting only the wind and the fragrance of the sea, not far away, pass through.
At the base of the building are the bedrooms, garage, and service areas. Above, the architects designed a double-height suspended box for the social areas. "This strategy allowed us to elevate social life above street level, envelop it with air, and open it up to the square". The elevated patios function as contemplation terraces — small platforms where one can breathe in the scent of flowers and listen to the rustle of leaves.
The rooms are arranged around a courtyard, seeking silence. Here, privacy is expressed through an enclosed space, like an inner world. "The house does not look out onto the neighbourhood; it turns inwards, like someone seeking refuge. But it does not close itself off either: it opens up to the sky, to the shade, to the square. Everything is organised so that life can happen in a slower and fuller way — more open to the invisible," explain the architects.
Materiality is inevitably tactile and sensory. White tones shine under the coastal sun, while concrete — heavy and honest — gently absorbs light and transforms over time.
Casa Tao is a project born from the desire to live in the world with greater attention. It is a house that discreetly withdraws and offers its spaces as environments for contemplation and memory. "In it, living becomes a form of study, of pause, of gratitude. Every corner invites you to linger, and every shadow is a promise of well-being".
In a neighbourhood without striking landscapes, Casa Tao stands out. A tree-lined square offering shade and some coolness guided the project's design. To avoid large glass surfaces that could intensify heat, the HW Studio team proposed an oblique, angular relationship between the house and the square, allowing the presence of this public space to be felt without the building being fully exposed to intense sunlight.
The act of inhabiting is framed indirectly, as if the house were observing the world diagonally and modestly, letting only the wind and the fragrance of the sea, not far away, pass through.
At the base of the building are the bedrooms, garage, and service areas. Above, the architects designed a double-height suspended box for the social areas. "This strategy allowed us to elevate social life above street level, envelop it with air, and open it up to the square". The elevated patios function as contemplation terraces — small platforms where one can breathe in the scent of flowers and listen to the rustle of leaves.
The rooms are arranged around a courtyard, seeking silence. Here, privacy is expressed through an enclosed space, like an inner world. "The house does not look out onto the neighbourhood; it turns inwards, like someone seeking refuge. But it does not close itself off either: it opens up to the sky, to the shade, to the square. Everything is organised so that life can happen in a slower and fuller way — more open to the invisible," explain the architects.
Materiality is inevitably tactile and sensory. White tones shine under the coastal sun, while concrete — heavy and honest — gently absorbs light and transforms over time.
Casa Tao is a project born from the desire to live in the world with greater attention. It is a house that discreetly withdraws and offers its spaces as environments for contemplation and memory. "In it, living becomes a form of study, of pause, of gratitude. Every corner invites you to linger, and every shadow is a promise of well-being".
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