Tropical Beach House | Smith House | Limon | Costa Rica | Benjamin Garcia Saxe

This beach house for Tom and Annie Smith is located less than 100 meters from the Caribbean Sea and surrounded by a lush tropical rainforest. They wished to provide a view to the ocean from every space in the house while also integrating the large trees in the forest around them. The house was then placed longitudinally along the beachfront dividing the private (bedrooms) and public spaces (living, dining, and kitchen) with the entrance. A corridor along the back acts as the umbilical cord for all the spaces while providing a very open view to the forest.......more

The Lalonde family House | Guanacaste | Costa Rica | Benjamin Garcia Saxe

The Lalonde family owned a property close to the Pacific Ocean, but it was surrounded by houses on three sides. They wished to have a home were they could all see the ocean from their bedrooms with an intimate family room in between. The house was then split in two floors, the second dedicated to these private spaces which would in turn lead into a terrace that views the ocean. The entire house was also orientated in an open V shape in order to squeeze a view through the neighboring properties and into the horizon. This geometry allowed for a pool and play area to be safely guarded between the two wings of the V on the first floor, thus creating a captured external garden that integrates completely with the public activities of the large open space of the kitchen, dining and living........more