Inspiring home of the week: Timber retreat tucked away in the shadow of a Chilean volcano

Casa Hualle both stands out and blends in with its surroundings. Megan Townsend speaks to Javier Ampuero about building a space that exhibits the landscape like a piece of art

The home takes inspiration from local volcanic sand for the charcoal colour of the external timber panels (Photography by Felipe Fontecilla)

An earthy wooden cabin in Chile’s Araucania region sits quietly in the shadow of one of South America’s most active volcanoes, providing breathtaking views of the Villarrica – while using materials and innovative design to keep the build as eco-friendly as possible.

Casa Hualle reflects the dual nature of the nearby town of Pucon, contrasting the dark – sometimes treacherous – nature of the volcano with the beautiful light forests that surround it.

Architecture firm Ampuero Yutronic – which is based in Santiago and London – focused on craftsmanship when designing the property. They used locally sourced light-coloured plywood to provide a bright, airy, just-finished feel to the interior, and took inspiration from local volcanic sand for the charcoal colour of the external timber panels.

The home consists of two levels, with rooms separated by wooden panels. The floors are made of black concrete, in contrast to the light colour of the plywood walls, and the windows are placed unevenly throughout the structure to emulate wall art.

We caught up with Javier Ampuero, one half of the firm, to talk about the home.

Please tell us a little about your practice.

Ampuero Yutronic is a new architecture and design studio founded a year ago by myself, Javier Ampuero Ernst, and my wife, Catalina Yutronic. We have over a decade of experience working between the United Kingdom and the rest of the world for leading international architecture offices. We are a small office with no more than five people.

What is your practice known for?

Functionality and comfort are the main components of our work. We have a growing reputation for bringing distinctive ideas, coherent simplicity and careful attention to detail and we use pure and tactile materials to achieve this. We approach every project differently and we are devoted to the idea of collaboration and exploration to get the best results. We are not bashful of aesthetic, however we oppose fashion and trends.

How would you sum up the project in five words?

A piece of fine craftsmanship.

What was the brief for this project?

The brief was to create a house that has openness and serenity, embracing its setting within an outstanding natural landscape. The house should have a clear link with the landscape, responding sympathetically to its context and the traditional buildings of the region, rather than competing. A building with rural character and a necessity for function inherently imbedded in its design.

What did you hope to solve as you designed this home?

Our main design challenges were clear from the very beginning. Firstly, how the building could blend seamlessly with nature, both from the inside and the outside. Additionally, how to create a simple and bold series of interior spaces which provide a feeling of comfort, warmth and relaxation.

What makes this space unique?

It is hard not to think that with such a beautiful landscape this house would not be special. However, overturning the internal spaces to this surrounding setting was not coincidental. We did a lot of research in how to place the house in the correct location and how to get the most of the views from inside.

We used drones to simulate the height of the openings and the viewpoints. We studied window sizes and positions to maximise or minimise solar gain where beneficial and take advantage of the interior thermal mass to control internal temperature. The result was this exhibition space-like house where the landscape is exhibited similar to paintings on the inside walls.

What was your inspiration for this project?

The initial idea was to see the building as a sculptural object that stands out without becoming incongruous. We imagined the house as a tree trunk lying on the ground. The facade resembles the bark of a tree, the dark, outermost skin, and the interior linings represent the paler inner sapwood of the trunk.

We combined this metaphorical representation with other sources of inspiration, such as the grey tones found in some traditional rural buildings of the area and also the beautiful dark colour of the volcanic basalt stone. For the interior we were inspired by the reference of Casa Malaparte in Capri, in particular the contrast of the white interior and the big windows that framed the awe-inspiring views.

What was the toughest issue you encountered when this building was being designed and built?

During the initial stages prior to construction commencing we were primarily designing from London, therefore we had to work intensively to develop and coordinate the design with the local engineers and trades. The fostering of a good relationship with the local building contractor allowed us to make this process much easier.

Undoubtedly the toughest issues we encountered were during construction. We were demanding a high level of craftsmanship in an isolated area in the south of Chile where more traditional and rudimental construction techniques are the norm. As such there needed to be a clear dialogue to understand the local way of building, how to transfer technical ideas into simple solutions with the technology available, finding appropriate materials and how to transport them.

The isolation on the exposed hillside and the inclement weather conditions during the winter months was something we needed to adapt to during construction. It was a process of forming a clear understanding and close, almost family, relationships with the people involved in the construction of the house. This allowed us to confront and solve the challenges we discovered during construction. We established what we wanted and how to achieve it. Everyone fought hard to get it done within a defined and limited budget.

What do you wish you could change in hindsight?

We achieved what we initially planned and are extremely happy with the result. The original ideas and drawings are very close to the final result. When you also appreciate the hard work and dedication of everyone involved in building the house it is difficult to wish you could change something, even if you had the opportunity.

What sort of experience do you hope people using this space have?

We created distinct spaces with an intentionally limited palette of materials to achieve calm interiors through simple, clear and timeless design. We hope people feel relaxed in this serene environment while appreciating the beauty of the landscape. A space where you leave behind the routine of working life and find inspiration from nature from the moment you wake up until sunset. A retreat where you can uncover the value of life.

Please add anything else you feel is important

A significant amount of the furniture inside the house was designed by the studio. We built it with local furniture makers who shared their knowledge of working with locally sourced native species of wood.