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    Tembo Tembo lodge hides among landscape of South African game reserve

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    Rammed earth walls and an organic colour scheme help this South African family lodge designed by architecture practice Studio Asaï to blend into its natural surroundings.

    Tembo Tembo sits close to the Sabie River on the western edge of Kruger National Park – a sprawling game reserve that’s home to a wide array of flora and fauna, including what’s known as the “big five”: lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and buffalo.
    Tembo Tembo’s rammed earth walls blend into the landscape of the game reserveThis setting was a large point of inspiration for Paris-based Studio Asaï, which decided to construct the home from rammed earth, emulating the materiality of towering termite nests that can be seen across the reserve.
    “More locally, [rammed earth] is only used for singular walls in the house, thought of as a decorative object,” explained the studio. “For Tembo Tembo, we decided to use it as the main material for the entire house.”
    Dark wood lines the home’s moody entrancewayTo ensure the stability of the home, Studio Asaï worked alongside local architect Nicholas Plewman to develop a structural skeleton that could support the roof and walls.

    Locally sourced rammed earth was then applied to the structure, mixed with a sealant to make the material less porous and crumbly.
    A green sofa in the living area is meant to emulate the colour of the foliage outdoorsThe house was also built atop an 80-centimetre-high concrete platform to keep away lizards and other critters while minimising flooding from the heavy downpours that frequently occur in the region from September onwards.
    The property’s flat steel roof is meant to give the home a lower, more discrete profile.
    The dining area opens onto a shaded terraceInhabitants access the home through a moody entryway lined with dark wood panels. A papery, three-tier pendant light hangs from the centre of the space directly above a white marble table.
    The home’s rammed earth walls were left exposed in the adjacent living area, which is anchored by a modular green sofa that nods to the foliage of the South African bush.
    Cream plaster walls and a coffered ceiling can be seen in the home’s libraryTo the side of this space is a contemporary kitchen complete with dark wood cabinetry and a blocky breakfast island crafted from black Zimbabwean granite.
    In the corner of the room is a travertine marble dining table surrounded by chairs with woven seats. This is positioned directly next to an expansive glazed panel that, when slid back, lets inhabitants step onto a shaded terrace.
    Curtains help give the principal bedroom a tented safari-camp feelCreamy plaster walls appear in the home’s library, complementing the rustic beige fabric that was set into the room’s coffered ceiling.
    Studio Asaï revived the “bush” green of the sofa but this time in the form of a glossy work desk.
    The house’s rammed earth walls are revealed again in the guest bedroomDesigned to feel akin to a “modern safari camp”, the principal bedroom features a large bed that can be enclosed with gauzy curtains on all sides.
    There’s a cosier feel in the guest bedroom where Studio Asaï has once again left the rammed earth walls bare and installed a black metal fireplace for use in the cooler months.
    There’s also a striking bathroom that’s almost entirely lined in a flecked Namibian stone.
    Namibian stone covers surfaces in the bathroomTembo Tembo has made the shortlist of the home interior category at this year’s Dezeen Awards.
    It will compete against other projects such as Prior Barraclough’s Union Street House, which is entirely lined in Australian hardwood, and Keiji Ashizawa Design’s Hiroo Residence, which is decked out in muted tones to amplify the space’s sense of light.
    The photography is by Adrien Dirand.
    Project credits:
    Interior design and architecture: Studio AsaïArchitecture: Nick Plewman ArchitectsLandscape design: Green Inc

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      Gonzalez Haase AAS evokes Iceland's volcanic landscape at 66º North store

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      Architecture studio Gonzalez Haase AAS has completed a store on London’s Regent Street for Icelandic clothing brand 66º North, featuring curved walls and freestanding plinths made from rammed earth.

      The Berlin-based studio headed by Pierre Jorge Gonzalez and Judith Haase set out to create a holistic concept for the store that represents Iceland in an original way, rather than relying on stereotypes.
      The shop interior was informed by Iceland’s volcanic landscapesGonzalez Haase AAS let the natural elements and the country’s geology inform key design features such as curved grey walls that evoke the shifting weather and rammed-earth islands that represent the earth.
      “The weather in Iceland is a very real and prominent feature in the land and we classified this as static (the island) and forever changing (the weather),” the studio explained. “The static island of Iceland stands still in comparison to the constantly evolving and adapting weather, but this influences the perception of the island.”
      Rammed-earth islands add colour and texture to the shop’s interiorUpon entering the space, visitors encounter a series of curved walls rendered in natural pigmented clay sourced from Cornwall in the south of England.

      The designers said the use of different grey tones represents the changing weather: “the immaterial, movement, changing, blurry and informal”.
      Grey walls represent Iceland’s shifting weatherThe curved walls vary in height and frame different views within the store. At the entrance, one of the walls stretches back 18 metres, drawing the viewer’s gaze into the space and offering a tactile introduction to the experiential interior.
      “These curved walls create different perspectives and atmospheres,” the design team added. “They sit in front of the existing white walls to create a dramatic foreground of rolling soft curves.”

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      A series of monumental rammed-earth islands are inserted throughout the floor plan, adding colour and texture that evokes the earth and magma of Iceland’s volcanic landscape.
      The islands were created by artist Lennart Frank, who cast and sculpted them from an aggregate mix of different lava rocks to create a layered effect.
      The islands were made from an aggregate mix containing different lava rocksA combination of pigmented aggregate and sand gives the islands their reddish-brown hue, while the rugged texture brings a tactile element to the space that complements the brand’s clothing.
      The earthy tones are echoed in the metal clothes rails, as well as in the colour of a carpet applied to the surfaces within a more intimate space at the rear of the store.
      Earth-toned carpet was used in parts of the shopA custom-made mesh ceiling was designed to evoke a misty white sky, while also concealing lights and technical equipment.
      Mirrors and screens displaying films of the Icelandic landscape help to define the flow of movement through the space and add a playful dimension to the shopping experience.
      The shop is located on Regent Street in LondonGonzalez and Haase founded their Berlin-based studio in 1999. The firm works on commercial, residential and cultural projects, developing spatial concepts and experiences that foreground the interplay between light and architecture.
      Previous interiors designed by Gonzalez Haase AAS include a minimal office for a Berlin communications firm and a sparse, white-walled concept store in Lisbon that occupies a disused warehouse.
      The photography is by Thomas Meyer, Ostkreuz Photography.

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      Arquitectura Nativa creates rammed-earth retreat for retired archaeologist

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      Arquitectura Nativa has completed a home in Mexico for a retired archaeologist and their partner, using “rudimentary and artisanal techniques” that help the home blend into its surroundings.

      Casa Martha is located on a steep and rocky site facing the ocean in La Misión, a small village situated roughly halfway between the cities of Tijuana and Ensenada, in the Baja California region of Mexico.
      The La Misión home by Arquitectura Nativa stretches across three levelsThree levels step down a hill, forming the living spaces for a couple and their guests.
      Local architect studio Arquitectura Nativa laid out the most public areas of the home on the lowest level. On this floor, there are two guest bedrooms, a dine-in kitchen and a generous outdoor patio facing the street.
      Many of the materials used in the home, such as the artisanal wooden shutters and rammed-earth walls, were chosen for their hand-made qualities and appropriateness to the building’s context.

      The public spaces can be accessed through the folding doors on the house’s lowest level”Casa Martha is modelled with deep sensitivity and respect for its surroundings,” Arquitectura Nativa principal Alfredo Navarro Tiznado explained.
      “The main construction element is compacted earth. In this way, the site and its topography are consolidated as the raw materials of the project,” he added.
      An open-plan living space takes up the second floor”The first level is divided into two areas, the visitor area made up of two rooms and the study area that can function as a painting and carpentry workshop or as a garage,” Tiznado explained.
      A breezeway open to the elements separates the two halves of the home. At the back of the property, two smaller courtyards ensure that every space gets natural ventilation and daylight.

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      A flight of stairs flanked by rammed-earth walls leads to the intermediate level, which the architect described as the “heart” of the home. This is where the main living space is located.
      An open-concept kitchen, living and dining room are flanked by glass walls, which open out towards the landscape and are shaded by an overhanging concrete slab.
      The home is surrounded by a sheltered walkwayA walkway surrounds the home that can be closed off with wooden shutters.
      “This lattice generates protection from the prevailing winds, as well as a component of privacy towards the interior,” Tiznado explained.
      Outdoor terraces can be accessed from the upper floorsThese handcrafted panels also create a “play of light and shadows,” Tiznado added.
      The studio also laid out two terraces on the roof of the spaces below, offering the occupants a variety of places to enjoy the outdoors.
      Walls of rammed earth and doors made from wood let the building blend in with the siteThe topmost level is significantly smaller than the two lower floors and is reserved for the owners.
      The second-storey perch offers the best views of the surrounding landscape and is separated from the guest rooms to give all occupants plenty of privacy when using the 310-square-metre home.
      “The main chamber has a view of the context’s landscape — in this space, the interior is blurred with the exterior,” said Tiznado.
      Wooden shutters help modulate the sunOther recent buildings in the Baja California area include a private residence that was converted into a hotel by Paolo Sarra and studio Punto Arquitectónico, and a hotel that combines modern design with traditional influences by Max von Wertz.
      The photography is by Oscar Hernández Rodríguez.
      Project credits:Architect: Alfredo Navarro TiznadoDesign team: Kenia Esmeralda García Rosas, Hanna Appel Hernández, Giancarlo Reyes OlguinConstruction: Pedro Luis Curiel Bojórquez, José Francisco Ramírez García, Alfredo Navarro Tiznado,

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      Rammed-earth counter anchors Flamingo Estate pop-up in Los Angeles

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      Vibrant green walls surround a chunky rammed-earth counter in this garden-themed pop-up shop in LA that creatives Alex Reed and Dutra Brown have designed for lifestyle brand Flamingo Estate.Flamingo Estate’s Harvest Shop pop-up takes over a retail unit in Platform, a high-end shopping centre in LA’s Culver City area.
      The shop offers an array of the brand’s holistic products for the body and home, along with its range of pantry foods, which includes items such as extra-virgin olive oil, honey and dark chocolate.
      Many products are made with ingredients grown on the grounds of Flamingo Estate, which is tucked away in the hills of the nearby Eagle Rock neighbourhood. Its sprawling garden is host to 150 different species of flowering plants and shrubs, as well as a fruit orchard, vegetable beds and a hive of bees.

      A rammed-earth counter sits at the centre of Harvest Shop

      This lush landscape became a key point of reference for the pop-up’s designers, locally-based creatives Alex Reed and Dutra Brown.
      Together they sought to fashion a space that resembled “a small, secret corner of the estate itself…as if it was lifted from the earth and brought to the store”.

      An abstract sculpture perches on one end of the counter
      At the centre of the shop is a monolithic counter crafted from rammed earth. The bottom of the counter is inset with different-coloured fragments of stone, while the top features a cluster of white-tile blocks and platforms on which products are presented.
      To ensure the tiles could be used again post pop-up, a simple mixture of mud and earth was used as grout.
      A corner of the counter is dominated by an amorphous sculpture that Reed and Brown created using scagliola – a type of plaster typically made from gypsum, glue and pigments.

      A mural depicting trees and rolling hills acts as a backdrop to the counter
      “For Flamingo Estate’s first physical location, we looked to the company’s ‘hands-in-the dirt’ ideals of what is luxurious and covetable today,” the pair said.
      “We’ve utilized our respective expertise to design and build a project centred around materiality – this collage of organic material and sculptural form, together with provenance and fantasy, celebrates what we love about Flamingo Estate.”

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      The garden theme continues onto Harvest Shop’s walls, where LA-based artist Abel Macias has painted a rich, green mural.
      “Richard [Christiansen, owner of Flamingo Estate] and I talked about a concept based around Snow White, the enchanted little forest that she lives in that’s sort of dark but very magical and green in a way,” explained Macias.
      “We came up with this landscape that’s rolling hills and swirly trees, keeping everything in the tonal green world so that it feels verdant and very lush [in the store].”
      Emerald-coloured paint covers a wall on the opposite side of the shop, which is mounted with rows of glass jars filled with various natural ingredients.

      Another wall is mounted with rows of glass jars
      Flamingo Estate is overseen by creative director Richard Christiansen. Beyond the estate’s garden lies a Spanish colonial-style house that, since the beginning of 2020, has operated as a chic retreat for creative people in Los Angeles.
      Its Harvest Shop pop-up isn’t the only retail project to have made use of rammed earth. Last year, Mexican architect Frida Escobedo applied rammed-earth bricks to the walls of an Aesop store in Brooklyn, New York, to emulate the facade of the brownstone townhouses seen around the area.
      Photography is by Adrian Gaut.

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