Manuel Cervantes Estudio’s post-hurricane houses in Acapulco, Mexico is this year’s AR House winner, alongside two highly commended and three commended projects
Towns and cities on Mexico’s Pacific coast are increasingly at risk from hurricanes, with two highly destructive storms in the last two years. In the aftermath of Hurricane Otis in 2023, Manuel Cervantes Estudio with non-profit organisations Asociación Gilberto and Construyendo established the Kon-tigo initiative to build long-term residences for people in Acapulco whose homes had been damaged or destroyed. Each house costs an average US$18,000 to build and use innovative pre-fabricated panels. 42 houses have been completed, with another 78 ongoing. The winning project was selected by Stella Daouti, co-founder of Architecture Research Athens, Boonserm Premthada, founder of Bangkok Project Studio and Mike Tonkin, co-founder of Tonkin Liu.
Stella Daouti praised the houses’ ‘straightforward yet playful strategy’ to provide post-disaster houses on sites across the city. The houses ‘respond to people’s needs’ and move away from a ‘rigid, large-scale approach’, Daouti thought of the project.
Boonserm Premthada said the houses ‘represent a pivotal shift towards addressing the needs of marginalised communities, with architecture working in conjunction with bottom-up policies.’ He described them as ‘durable and breathable houses that serve as a sanctuary tailored to their residents’ social and economic realities’.
Mike Tonkin commended the houses as a ‘robust system of modular components providing a sophisticated and affordable solution for hurricane-proof housing that melds into the urban fabric’.
One of the post-hurricane houses by Manuel Cervantes Estudio
Credit: César Béjar
AR House 2024 results
All winning projects are published in the December 2024/January 2025 issue of the magazine. Buy your copy here.
Winner Post-hurricane houses by Manuel Cervantes Estudio in Mexico
Highly commended The Old Byre by Gianni Botsford Architects in the United Kingdom
Highly commended Casa Cosmos by S-AR in Mexico
Commended Ocarina House by LCLA Office in Colombia
Commended Mapleton House by Atelier Chen Hung in Australia
Commended Reciprocal House by Gianni Botsford Architects in the United Kingdom
The Old Byre by Gianni Botsford Architects in Cowes, United Kingdom
Credit: Schnepp Renou
The winner is joined by two highly commended projects including The Old Byre on the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom, by Gianni Botsford Architects. A conversion of two former agricultural barns now serves as a home for the owner’s family as well as an artists’ residency and studio.
The judges praised the architects for their refined integration of modern components with the historical building fabric, using ‘subtle design choices and careful material selections to achieve a balance between warm and cool, refined and rugged.’ Mike Tonkin praised the project’s ‘amplified qualities within the mundane jumble of English farm buildings’ and its ‘ritualised’ perspective on rural living. Boonserm Premthadacommended the architects for ‘skilfully harmonising the site’s cultural, historical and natural elements’ and Stella Daouticalled the house a ‘liveable space where the past is not merely a treasure artefact but an integral part of daily life and the artistic process.’
Casa Cosmos by S-AR in Puerto Escondido, Mexico
Credit: Camila Cossio
Also highly commended is Casa Cosmos by S-AR in Puerto Escondido, Mexico, a holiday retreat on the Pacific coast that exposes visitors to an intimate contact with the surrounding natural environment.
‘In an era of climate change where architecture often tries to control a building’s indoor climates, Casa Cosmos does the opposite,’ Stella Daouti thought. ‘Here, nature is experienced in full – felt, smelled, heard, and even embraced in silence under the stars.’ Boonserm Premthada thought the project a ‘fitting sanctuary’ amidst a challenging and beautiful environment, and Mike Tonkin praised the house’s ‘controlled primary geometry and strategic materiality, engaging in nature’s delights’.
Mapleton House by Atelier Chen Hung in Mapleton, Australia
Credit: David Chatfield
Three additional projects were commended by the jury, including Mapleton House in Mapleton, Australia, by Atelier Chen Hung. The judges praised the architects for their careful handling of a ‘telescoping’ viewpoint on a hillside site near Sunshine Coast, allowing the house’s occupants to ‘absorb the cityscape and terraced landscapes below’ while sharing those views with the public.
Ocarina House by LCLA Office in El Carmen de Viboral, Colombia
Also commended is Ocarina House in El Carmen de Viboral, Colombia, by LCLA Office. The house for a ceramicist was recognised as a ‘profound reflection of an artist’s life, inspiration and creative process’. ‘The house acts as a living canvas where the built environment continuously responds to natural phenomena,’ they said.
Reciprocal House by Gianni Botsford Architects in London, United Kingdom
Credit: Schnepp Renou
The last project to be commended is Reciprocal House in London, United Kingdom – the second project in the list by Gianni Botsford Architects. The house was praised for ‘its affectionate relationship with its host’, an earlier Norman Foster extension to a suburban family home. The judges praised the house’s ‘limited palette of beautifully detailed industrial materials that focus on the natural surroundings and the quality of light that enters its prismatic volume,’
View the full 2024 shortlist, find out more about the AR House awards’ long illustrious history or register your interest for the 2025 edition
