Villa Prelat: A Sustainable Dwelling in the Argentine Savanna

The clients, Katherine and Alfredo Prelat, plan to build a new home on a tract of land in the Argentine savanna, in a province called Entre Riós. They seek a design for a country home with a horse barn and extensive gardens. This villa will be off the grid and must incorporate sustainable architecture.The design for the Villa Prelat emerged from five fundamental considerations:• clients’ focus on sustainability• architectural theory of Critical Regionalism• villa typology• features of the site• program for the villaIn discussions with the client, it became clear that they were not only interested in sustainability, they wanted to create a model of sustainability for Entre Riós. They noted that the movement toward “green technology” has been slow to reach this area, and they wanted an ecologically sensitive dwelling that could serve as an example for the surrounding community. Second, Critical Regionalism was determined to be a fitting theoretical underpinning for this project. Third, the villa typology was deemed a highly suitable vehicle for sustainability goals because it responds to regional characteristics and integrates with the estancia typology found in Argentina. Fourth, the physical characteristics of the site were a dominant factor in the design. Design principles were distilled from specific aspects of the region and landscape. Site factors such as climate, wind patterns, and soil conditions were integral to design decisions. Last, the program of the Villa Prelat was developed, in part, to meet a primary goal of the clients; to foster and support familial and social relationships.Following discussions with the designer, the clients embraced the concept of a contemporary villa. The core of the theoretical approach to ecological design was derived from the people, landscape, climate, and architectural tradition of Entre Riós.

Name thesis:degree_name

MARCH

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Cincinnati

Year dc:date

2012

Author dc:creator

• McCarthy, Andrew D.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Tilman, Jeffrey

• Architecture
• sustainability
• critical regionalism
• ecology
• villa
• Argentina
• domestic

Statement dc:rights

• unrestricted
• This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1354894038

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:ucin1354894038