From volcanic rock, soil-based render to roofs covered in shrubs, these seven houses have all been designed to complement their setting in Mexico's scenic Valle de Bravo.
Santana House is a one-storey property designed by CC Arquitectos to step down a sloped, forested site in Valle de Bravo.
Weathered stone and natural wood walls are punctured by huge panels of glazing that create views between walls, to the surrounding walls, and frame spaces around the perimeter – including an existing tree that forms the heart of the entry courtyard.
Taller Hector Barroso designed five identical holiday homes for the Entre Pinos development. Each house is composed of six volumes arranged a courtyard that the studio said "grants views, silence and intimacy".
The Mexico City studio used local materials for the project including timber, brick and an earthy pink render made from soil excavated from the building's foundations.
Designed to blend in with its green surroundings, this Y-shaped house by Cadaval & Solà-Morales has concrete walls that are painted black and a roof covered with shrubbery. The concrete is imprinted with fallen and dead trees found around its site.
The house's three wings have large windows at the ends to offer different views of the surroundings.
Taller Hector Barroso also designed this house in the area as a weekend retreat for a family of six in a forested setting.
Exterior walls are made of concrete and pine, along with mud bricks that were produced in a nearby quarry. Wooden shutters open to offer natural light inside the rooms which also feature a complimentary neutral colour palette.
Cedar charred black using the Japanese method of yakisugi and stone from a quarry in nearby Acatlán are used to blend this house "as a shadow in the green surroundings".
Among the key features of the property is a huge cantilevered volume fronted by a large window that offers views from the living room to a nearby lake.
Weber Arquitectos separated this holiday complex into five cabins – including guest houses, the main lodge and a recreational building – in order to preserve existing trees growing on the site.
The structures all have a grey exterior, with the main residence and social cabin covered in volcanic stone. Described by the Mexican studio as "very sober and forceful", the dark colour palette continues across the interior decor.
A matte-black rendering called Corev Mooth covers the walls of this residence, while window frames and shutters are made from a tropical tzalam wood coated in reddish sealer as a contrast.
Called Las Golondrinas, the house is composed of three volumes topped by a large sloped roof to create a covered patio that opens onto a swimming pool that aligns with the tree canopy.
Roatán Próspera is a residential community intended for Roatán, a Caribbean island off the coast of Honduras.
The complex will be a modular construction formed of timber-framed residences each boasting curved roofs and expansive rounded balconies that can be customised by residents.
Thanks to its luxurious features commenters have said that the project would make a great set for a new Lord of the Rings film – perfect as "Rivendell's retreat for the rich".
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Coral Carbonate is a research project that involves 3D printing with calcium carbonate to create sustainable underwater "houses" for coral polyps and marine life to grow.
Developed by US design workshop Objects and Ideograms, the project is intended to facilitate the restoration of coral reefs – one of the most vulnerable ecosystems on Earth.
Coral Carbonate is an exploration of 3D printing with calcium carbonate by Objects and Ideograms
The 3D-printed Coral Carbonate objects have cylindrical bodies with porous, rocky surfaces. These are modelled on the form of natural coral skeletons, which are also made from calcium carbonate and act as the foundations of all coral reef structures.
Like coral skeletons, these units encourage the growth of reefs because the nooks and crannies in their surfaces act as homes for coral polyps and marine life to flourish.
It involves using Calcium carbonate to 3D-print objects that resemble coral skeletons
"With rising ocean temperatures and increase in acidification, many aquatic organisms using calcification to create their homes are being rapidly destroyed," explained Alex Schofield, the architect and design technologist who heads up Objects and Ideograms.
"The goal of Coral Carbonate is to print the scaffold for a 'house' that biological organisms will inhabit and grow their own new homes and communities," he told Dezeen. "Once embedded, marine life can take advantage of a substrate most similar to their native home."
The ambition is to facilitate the restoration of coral reefs that are dying because of human activity
Coral Carbonate was initiated three years ago by Schofield after he learned that coral reefs around the world were rapidly experiencing unprecedented destruction due to human activity and climate change.
Looking to rapidly help create more reefs, he discovered that the solutions currently available are often made from unsustainable, manmade materials rather than those native to marine ecosystems.
Calcium carbonate is used as it is a natural material native to marine environments
"The material invention and application of Calcium Carbonate using this method of fabrication is very novel, leading us to a material formula and process that is now patent-pending," added Schofield.
Calcium carbonate is abundant throughout the world, typically sourced from limestone, marble and chalk. The studio hopes that in the future it may also be possible to acquire the material through carbon sequestration – the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere – similarly to how coral polyps capture carbon from ocean water and convert it to calcium carbonate to make the skeletons.
It is also a sustainable alternative to manmade materials typically used in marine restoration
"Alternative materials for underwater ecosystems and coastline fabrication, such as concrete used for Reef Balls, Tetrapods structures, or even coral frags, often leach undesirable byproducts and contribute a large carbon footprint in their production process," added Schofield.
"Waste by-products from cities, such as old New York City subway cars, have also been used as a substrate for artificial reef restoration. Why do we use our own trash and byproducts of human life, to rebuild underwater?"
Objects and Ideograms' first Coral Carbonate prototypes were recently installed to the base of Float Lab in the San Francisco Bay in collaboration with California College of the Arts. They are now under close observation and have already seen habitation and growth.
The prototype combines several of the cylindrical objects tied together with rope in a stacked form. This is designed for flexibility and emulates marine biofouling – the accumulation of biological matter on submerged objects like boats that can be very diverse ecosystems.
The first prototypes are currently under observation at Float Lab in San Francisco Bay
The shapes and sizes for the Coral Carbonate units are developed through observation of natural coral skeletons combined with digital computation techniques.
Rather than attempting to directly replicate the size and shape coral skeletons, the 3D-printed objects are optimised to create as much surface area for life as possible.
Objects and Ideograms claims it is an easily replicable process
"These are not one-to-one replicas of coral, the goal is not to literally recreate the skeleton of coral, but to learn from and mimic their forms and functions to create broader opportunities for biological growth in various conditions," said Schofield.
"The surface patterns, and spatial forms, are all optimised to create as much surface area as possible which make more real estate an opportunity for coral to settle and propagate with exposure to maximal sunlight."
Objects and Ideograms are now exploring how the patterns and forms of these objects can be scaled appropriately for other "clients" – such as fish seeking refuge from predators.
According to Schofield, the fabrication process for each object is highly replicable and the only hurdle for scaling is the size and number of 3D printers available.
It is now exploring how the objects can be scaled to support different marine creatures
"The larger the print bed of the printer, and the more printers accessible, the more can be fabricated and deployed," he said. "Today there are many large format binder jet 3D printers on the market that would help us scale in this way, we are always looking for new partners."
Coral Carbonate is an ongoing project and has so far involved many collaborations with the likes of the Fabien Cousteau Ocean Learning Center, California College of the Arts, and Moss Landing Marine Laboratories Benthic Lab.
Alex Goad is another designer featured on Dezeen that is helping with the restoration of coral reefs. His lego-inspired modular structures are intended to form a base for plant and animal life to return to their reef habitats that have been destroyed by human activity.
