Mexico City-based architectural practice Palma designed this concrete bungalow in Litibu, a small town on the coast of the Mexican Pacific. With a budget of $38,000, the 50-square-meter building is a paradigm of laidback sophistication despite its modest size and humble form. The team managed to create a thoroughly contemporary house that seamlessly blends in with its exotic location while opening the interior to the outside and combining elements with a modernist architectural language of simplicity and functionality.
Comprising two cubic volumes housing the bedroom and living room, with an open patio in-between, the building’s austere concrete mass is softened by the thatched roofing, which is called ‘palapas’. Natural lighting and view are achieved with the circular skylight that crowns the sheltered patio and with the numerous foldable doors that allow both the living and private quarters to open up to the patio and surrounding courtyard.
The team decided to use a minimalist aesthetic that is underpinned by a muted palette of greys and natural wood finishes. Pigmented stucco, which was used instead of paint to avoid any humidity build-up in the walls, complements the exposed concrete surfaces of the building’s structure, including built-in elements like the kitchen counter and shelves, and the window and door lintels, while the timber roof structure and window frames add softer accents.