TRIANGULAR HOUSE BY ALEXANDRE FEU ROSA EMERGES FROM TROPICAL LANDSCAPE IN SALVADOR

Brazilian architect Alexandre Feu Rosa has designed his own residence 'Casa do Horto' in Salvador, Brazil, as a geometric response to a steep, tree-filled site, creating a triangular house that merges architecture with the surrounding tropical landscape.

Located in the 'Horto Florestal' district of Salvador in Brazil, the house was completed in 2001, and marked the architect’s return to practice after a four-year break. Built on a 1,950 sqm plot, the project sits within a densely vegetated condominium and is defined by a strong transverse slope.

To adapt to this complex topography, Feu Rosa carved into the terrain to create a platform approximately five meters above street level. This intervention allowed the main living spaces and private areas to be organised on a single level, positioned at the height of the surrounding tree canopy, a key feature of tropical house design in Brazil.

The level below contains garages, service areas and an vestibule illuminated by a front garden. From here, a staircase rises through a glass prism, gradually revealing the vegetation. This sequence creates a cinematic transition between ground and canopy, reinforcing the connection between architecture and nature.

The upper level is entirely immersed in its environment. Tree canopies frame the façade facing the street, while a stone retaining wall anchors the rear. The plan follows a triangular geometry, with functions distributed along its axes: living spaces and kitchen align with the street edge, while bedrooms extend perpendicularly. The third side, parallel to the slope, houses a large veranda and the main living room.

A break in the roofline draws the swimming pool closer to the interior, blurring the boundary between inside and outside, a recurring strategy in contemporary Brazilian architecture. A long frosted glass panel brings natural light into the circulation gallery while preserving privacy from the veranda.

At the end of this corridor, pivoting panels in glass and wood can be opened to visually connect distant parts of the house, linking the kitchen with the main bedroom in an unexpected spatial relationship.

Light plays a central role in the project. During the day, natural light filters through large glazed surfaces, illuminating the interiors. At night, the effect reverses: the house glows outward, turning the gallery into a luminous plane and the staircase into a light-filled volume.

This house in Salvador exemplifies how Alexandre Feu Rosa uses geometry not as a formal gesture, but as a tool to engage with site conditions. The project stands as a key example of contemporary Brazilian architecture, where form, landscape and domestic life are closely intertwined. 

source: arcoweb + projetodesign n°254 abril 2001 + https://feuarquitetura.com.br