Main pool
Restaurant
Levels outdoor/indoor
Hacienda Yaxcopoil is a Yucatan plantation near Merida, Mexico that stands as a representation of the Yucatan Peninsula history covering about 20,000 acres of land. The existing ruins from the hacienda consist of monumental “Moorish double arches”, which are considered the most beautiful designs of Yucatan and therefore it was very important to try to conserve as much of the existing structure as possible.
I was inspired by the exceptional Peter Zumthor. His designs are thought based on the place and use. Beneath all, he first feels and analyzes what emotions and impressions he wants his buildings to reveal and then he builds upon that.
Yaxcopoil
Yaxcopoil
Hacienda Yaxcopoil Thermal Bath and Spa investigates how architecture can be a material of process to experience the transition between the old and the new. This complex is a proposal that merges culture, nature, and the senses to explode the potential of space.
LandArt
Axonometric cuts
Axonometric cuts
Materials
Materials have been adapted to fit the existing concrete buildings on site. The new is represented with glass and wood, specifically in the lobby and restaurant to divide entrance areas and bath areas. These change of materials can directly inform the transition of spaces in the design.
Proportion is an essential part of the design and it is based on a Mayan unexcavated
pyramid, which has been revealed and redesign to wrap a cenote. Cenotes are an important geological feature in the Yucatan Peninsula created by collapsed limestone bedrocks and are believed to cleanse and purify the soul.
pyramid, which has been revealed and redesign to wrap a cenote. Cenotes are an important geological feature in the Yucatan Peninsula created by collapsed limestone bedrocks and are believed to cleanse and purify the soul.
Light comes to be an essential component of this complex. It can be admired in the illusion of how light descends into the cenote through its one circular opening. From there, the entire design of the different pools was based on the idea of reflection.
