Local craftsmanship and tropical flora take center stage at Casa TM, a beautifully detailed stucco home that pulls the outdoors in while protecting the homeowners’ privacy.

“The premise of the project was to integrate the diverse phenomenologies inspired by the tropical paradise of the Mexican Pacific in order to create a residence that constantly refers to unending vacation,” explains architect Javier Dueñas of the architectural practice CDM (Casas de México).

Located in Colima, a small state on Mexico’s west coast, Casa TM was custom crafted for a family of four who wanted a relaxing environment to call home. Yet, it was ultimately the careful navigation of the site’s many constraints that guided the building’s design.

“The context forced architecture to become introverted and massive as to protect the user from situations of recurring insecurity,” Javier commented of the high levels of crime and cartel violence in Colima. The oppressive humidity and heat—temperatures can rise to well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit with humidity rarely dropping below 75 percent—as well as the land’s susceptibility to flooding in the rainy season also dictated how the architects approached the project.

As a result, the five-bedroom home was elevated on a three-foot platform to protect against flooding and fragmented into a series of blocks to take advantage of cooling cross breezes. The large and circular tropical garden that anchors the heart of the home also helps redirect airflow from the pools and terrace in the west to the bedrooms on the opposite side of the house.

“The limits of enclosed space are blurred to favor the creation of open environments that allow natural air fluxes throughout the entire home in order to create the ambivalence between interiors and exteriors,” notes the firm.

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Project Credits:

Architect of Record: CDM Casas de México

Builder/ General Contractor: CDM Casas de México

Structural Engineer: Fransisco Manriquez Morán

Civil Engineer: Ernesto Olmo Godinez

Landscape Design Company: Juan Carlos Pérez Trejo

Lighting Design: Artenluz

Interior Design: MUMO