- Project: Pindaibeiras Residence
- Architect: Pablo Lanza Arquitetura
- Location: Brazil, Itu, São Paulo
- Year: 2018
- Area: 858 m2
- Photography: André Scarpa
Pindaibeiras Residence, designed by Pablo Lanza Arquitetura in collaboration with André Scarpa and Rosário Pinho, sits gracefully on a generous plot in Itu, Brazil. Developed mostly on one level, the house takes advantage of panoramic views and sloping terrain to create a home that elegantly balances privacy, openness, and visual connection with its surroundings.
Project Overview
The large site with privileged views allowed the team to design the residence largely as a single-level home. Only the master bedroom extends in a cantilever over the slope toward an adjacent lake. The design emphasizes horizontal volumes that respond to the land shape, remaining low toward the street while opening up toward the landscape.
A key façade facing the street is composed of low horizontal volumes arranged in dialogue with the terrain. On the private side, the long bedroom wing is clad in a cumaru brise (muxarabî) that filters light and ensures privacy.
Design Concept & Spatial Strategy
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Single-level living: To promote continuity and ease of movement, the main living, social, and service areas are on one floor.
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Cantilevered master suite: The master bedroom projects over the slope, creating a dramatic visual gesture and enhancing views.
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Horizontal language: Volumes stretch low and wide to integrate with the site rather than dominate it.
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Sun/light control: Cumaru brise screens modulate daylight and reduce heat, while preserving outward views.
These strategies allow the residence to feel grounded, contextual, and responsive to its site.
Materiality & Details
Materials are used with restraint and natural texture. The house employs:
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Cumaru screening wood for brise façades
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Glass and aluminum for large openings
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Natural masonry and structural elements in neutral tones
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Minimalist interiors to let light, views and materiality command presence
The brise not only provides functional shading and privacy, but also gives rhythm and tactility to the long façade.
Interior Experience & Flow
The social areas (living, dining, kitchen) are organized to open toward an expansive veranda, visually extending interior into landscape. The flow is seamless, with wide connections to exterior terraces.
The corridor that leads past bedrooms also aligns with the brise wall, creating filtered light and subtle interior transitions. The master suite, elevated and cantilevered, offers privacy and dramatic sightlines across the lake and slope.
Between public, semi-private, and private zones, the spatial organization remains intuitive and fluid.
Landscape & Site Integration
The residence embraces its topography. The built form steps with slope, retaining low profiles toward the street and unfolding toward the view. The landscape is part of the architecture: vegetation screens, terraces, and a respectful insertion into terrain ensure minimal visual disruption.
The cantilever over the slope indicates confidence and sensitivity—dramatic without overreaching.
Sustainability & Performance
While the project’s primary narrative is of form and view, it also exhibits performance strategies:
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Brise screens filter sunlight, reducing heat gain.
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Orientation maximizes views while minimizing harsh direct sun exposure.
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Compact planning reduces unnecessary circulation.
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Materials chosen for natural durability and low maintenance.
Pindaibeiras Residence by Pablo Lanza Arquitetura + André Scarpa is an exemplary contemporary Brazilian home: modest in its footprint, powerful in its spatial gestures, and deeply respectful of its topography. Through a single-level plan, a cantilevered master suite, and controlled façades, it achieves a poetic balance between privacy, openness, and environmental responsiveness.
This home is not just a showcase—it’s a living, breathing part of its landscape, offering lessons in integration, restraint, and architectural elegance.
