Cabaña Tunquen

A weekend getaway a stone’s throw from Santiago and the Viña del Mar-Valparaíso conurbation in Chile, the Cabaña Tunquen by DX Arquitectos is a haven for urbanites to reignite their connection to nature.
Based in part on the works of Corbusier as well as the sort of drawings a child tends to sketch of a dream home, the house has a novel play between formal spatial organization and the unbridled mirth one can feel when surrounded by a natural environment. It’s an audacious move by DX, as it peters towards kitsch ideals of a cabin in the woods, but thanks to their execution it does so without ever succumbing to them. Instead the home breathes the same breath as the forested area around it, with its wonderfully textured natural wood façade and delicately pristine wood interior.
Though the same basic element, each acts in a deliberate duality, with the exterior expressing the wildness of the woods and the inside of the home inviting the quiet solitude the cabin was built to sustain. The design is left simple, almost bare as a minimal testament to the glory of nature, with pleasing details like stair treads that slip perfectly between the panels of the adjacent walls. The Cabaña Tunquen is such a nice retreat from the crowds and noise of Chilean urban centers, I wouldn’t be surprised if it transitions from a weekend home to a permanent domicile.
Photography by Pablo Blanco

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