LA CORTE, THE COURTYARD When we first approached this project, Miami Beach, we were enchanted by the livelihood and calmness of the area, by the majestic, centenary mahogany tree in front of the house, that seems to dance in the breeze. I began studying and revisiting some architectural sketches I had from 2009-2010 when I was designing my mom's home. She was passionate about Mediterranean architecture, where courtyards are the center of the home, connecting every room and providing shade and shelter from the outside. La Corte in Italian (and Spanish) means Courtyard. That simple.
FLOORPLAN, SHADES, AND MOVEMENT
Miami's subtropical weather, although very different from a sub-Mediterranean climate, has some similarities to it. The courtyard, oriented to North, is naturally the best floorplan to create natural shading and to take advantage of reflected natural light against direct sunlight. Direct sunlight, besides overheating a space, it’s not the most suitable light for vision. Reflected sunlight instead, doesn’t get transformed into heat, so there is less heat coming in the house, and it’s the best light for studying, reading, and generally relaxing. We opened the house to the courtyard with major openings oriented to North, that offer different views from every corner. We assure cross ventilation with additional openings on the other facades too and to provide shading we added decorative eyebrows and louvers. These shading devices became part of the character of the architecture. What I just described is what architects call ‘passive architecture’, that refers to planning and designing taking in consideration local conditions such as sun path and winds, to minimize the amount of energy needed to cool or heat a home. The U-shaped floorplan naturally creates three different areas per floor, so the use of partitions is minimized and the space flows without barriers. The ground floor hosts a welcoming entry area with sculptural main stairs, the living room, the powder room, the family room, dining area, kitchen and one guest bedroom. The second-floor hosts 3 bedrooms and the laundry room. Two bedrooms are accessible from the main stair, and one is separated, and accessible from the kitchen stair, designed as detached guest suite or home office. On the outside, the U-shaped floorplan creates 5 different scenes: the courtyard, the two side-yards, the front yard, and the back yard. The spa, that serves both as a hot tub and/or a cold plunge, is located in the courtyard, that is the core of the project and serves as outdoor living room; the summer kitchen and outdoor dining is located in the north side yard; the lap pool and sun-patio are located in the backyard, facing southwest, getting all the sunlight. We love movement, in every shape, either exercising, walking, swimming or even just resting and watching trees and plants moving with the breeze. That is why the spaces are distributed and designed to encourage movement around the house, while ensuring privacy for all guests.
RESILIENCY, TECHNOLOGY, AND NERDY THINGS
While all new homes in Miami Beach are required to be elevated over base flood elevation, we decided to elevate La Corte of two extra feet from base flood elevation. The house also offers a storm water collection system ensuring that during a storm, all excess water gets collected and slowly drains underground within the property, without flooding streets or neighboring properties. From passive architecture, to active architecture, the envelope of the house, which includes walls, roof and windows package, has been designed to make the building as energy efficient as possible: our design team collaborated since early stages of the concept design with a LEED Certification Firm, which guided us in designing the most efficient envelope, with R values of R19 for walls, R21 for roof and windows with all UF values under 0.40 and SHGC values under 0.25. The insulation level provided by this envelope practically reduces the energy use for cooling and dehumidification by more than 65%, resulting in a big saving for the Owner on the electricity bill and in an even bigger saving on the emission of CO2. The project includes a photovoltaic solar system with Tesla batteries, which will allow the house to produce, store and use energy from a renewable resource and making the house self-sustainable, also in emergency situations of power shortage such as hurricanes or flooding. The cooling system of the house is another upgrade from the regular luxury Miami home. Instead of a centralized ducted system, we choose to work with a Smart Multi-Zone system by Mitsubishi with five different zones and short ducts: these units are the best and most efficient products available on today’s market, and besides excelling on the technical side, they are silent, they guarantee an even distribution and circulation of fresh air among all rooms and they allow to control the temperature in each room individually, based on needs or preferences. All appliances, lighting fixtures and plumbing fixtures have been selected for user comfort, design, and Energy Star rating. Lighting fixtures feature design pieces by Flos, Petite Friture and Kelle Wearstler. La Corte is projected to be certified as a Platinum LEED home. “LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the world's most widely used green building rating system and is a globally recognized symbol of sustainability achievement.
VIBES, VIEWS, AND ENERGIES
Have you ever stopped to think about how much architecture and design influence your mood? How entering a thoughtfully designed space makes you feel at ease and inspired? We spend most of our time in built environments and probably more than 50% of our days in our homes, so when approaching the interior design of La Corte, we turned our focus to functionality, flexibility, and timeless elegance. We selected natural finishes inspired by the sandy beaches of Miami Beach and a variation of textures to create a calming vibe: the facades and outdoor patios are clad with fossil coral rock tiles from the Dominican Republic, the ground floor displays 48”x48” ivory travertine tiles from Mexico, sourced by Grupo Arca, while the second floor has European oak wood floors. All the walls and ceilings in every room have been hand-brushed and painted with limewash paint, provided by Oikos: besides the amazing warm feeling of its texture and shades, it’s breathable, nontoxic, and eco-friendly, and the high pH level means that it’s bacteria- and mold-resistant. Also, because limewash paint contains no VOCs (volatile organic compounds), its application is practically odorless. The living areas and all rooms located on the ground floor feature 11 Ft tall ceilings and open spaces, giving guests and residents the feeling of grand and spaciousness. The bedrooms on the second floor, with their 9 Ft tall ceilings, invite the residents to feel cozier. Custom wall units, cabinetry, vanities, and boiserie, in European Oak Wood, have been crafted in Italy by Ideale Interni, a three generations carpentry shop near Bassano Del Grappa, Veneto, and feature Bloom hardware and Olivari handles. The overall style of the interior design could be described as a mix of contemporary, minimal, and organic. Common feedback shared by all visitors to the project is that it has a beautiful energy: truly the house has been designed following feng-shui principles. Feng shui is a practice that aims to harmonize individuals with their surrounding environment. It involves arranging elements in living spaces to create balance and enhance the flow of energy: in every room, natural stone, wood, natural paint and light, mirrors, and views create a harmonious background for any activity. The project has been recognized on an international architecture magazine, Platform Architecture, issued on April 2024 at the Salone del Mobile in Milano, Italy, as an example of Contemporary Mediterranean Architecture, Leader on Energy Efficiency and Mindful Design.
תגובות