Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Jul 24, 2025

A Black Timber Home in Chile Echoes Local Volcanic Stone

A Black Timber Home in Chile Echoes Local Volcanic Stone

From some angles, this dramatic residence resembles a pitched-roof shed, while other vantage points reveal its graduated form.

Rising from the foothills of one of Chile's most active volcanoes, this family home near the town of Pucon in the Araucanía region responds to the dramatic landscape that surrounds it. Santiago, and London based practice Ampuero Yutronic's initial concept for Casa Hualle was a simple rectangular volume, but the drawings evolved, through a series of manipulations and interventions, into a more sculptural form.



The house's dark façade, clad in vertically oriented, stained softwood timber slats, resembles the black volcanic stone structures that are commonly seen in the region.

Perched on a concrete terrace on half a hectare of open land, the residence has a monolithic black form, its tint echoing the natural landscape's dark volcanic stone.



"The geometry of the roof transforms from a typical pitched gable on the short northeast end of the façade, to a flat roof on the opposite end of the southwest facade," says cofounder Javier Ampuero Ernst. "This transition creates a dynamic arrangement of folding roof planes."

Inspired by the pitched-roof agricultural sheds found around Araucanía, the house is conceived as a single, sculptural volume with almost 2,475 square feet of living spaces spread across two levels.



The windows, which vary in size, were strategically placed to capture dramatic views of the volcano and lake.

"The rectangular footprint is extended to align the south side perpendicular to the axial view of the volcano, creating an irregular floor plan and volume," says firm cofounder Javier Ampuero Ernst. "The entrance to the house is emphasized by a large cutout in the overall volume on the southwest corner."



Passageways were carefully planned to present intriguing interior perspectives.

The roof extends above the cutout section to accentuate the entrance, and to provide shelter from wind and rain.



Polished concrete mixed with black volcanic sand is used for the floor, while the ceilings are lined in plasterboard.

In contrast to the dark exterior, the interior walls are clad in pale, stained plywood. As a result, scenes of the outdoors that are framed by windows stand out in contrast like landscape paintings against a gallery wall.



The corridor on the upper level.

The ceiling-which is supported entirely by the external perimeter wall, and uninterrupted by internal partition walls-folds and flows sinuously through the entire length of the building.



On the upper level is a corridor with a studio, library, and gallery that leads to the ensuite master bedroom.



The living room, dining room, kitchen, and two guest bedrooms are located on the ground level.

The living spaces are arranged around a central, double-height volume with the main living areas oriented on a north-south axis. Large apertures capture the best volcano and lake views, further connecting the residents with their environment.



A view of the temperate rainforest outdoors.

Says Ampuero Ernst, "Approaching by road, the house appears as a prominent, simple, black form on the hillside, reminiscent of the traditional, large, agricultural, pitched-roof sheds found in the area. In contrast, when viewed from the main valley to the north, the building nestles and blends into its rural pastoral surrounds."



Ground level floor plan drawing.



Upper level floor plan drawing.



Roof plan.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
×