Sacromonte Landscape Hotel Shelters / MAPA

Sacromonte is an invitation to approach the world of fine wines in a remote natural setting, where sophistication and the rudimentary coexist in a new experience of the landscape.

Architects: MAPA
Location: Carapé Mountain Range, Maldonado, Uruguay
Photography: Leonardo Finotti, Tali Kimelman

The modular metal structure, a blend of steel framing and light steel framing, gives preference to constructive simplicity and the efficient use of materials. Finishing is simple and expressive. Materials are used in harmony with their nature.

In sharp contrast, the walls supporting the prefab modules are built onsite with local stones and take diverse organic shapes adapted to each placement. Circular pools, composing a new sensory experience of the landscape, complement them.

The space is organized in a sequence of longitudinal layers of different thicknesses, between which daily life develops. The rear plane of the cabins is composed of piles of wood logs, reminiscent of woodpiles typical of lifestyles in natural settings.

The following layer hosts the wet areas such as the bathroom and the kitchen, a fireplace, and a reading nook ideal for just reading or sleeping a siesta, sheltered by the landscape. Separated by a wood plane, follows the main space containing the bedroom, living, and dining room, which opens fully onto the landscape it is inserted in and of which it is an integral part.

The façade is composed of a sheet of one-way mirrors, covering the cabin with an almost magical effect, creating a tense limit between both the camouflage and the rhythm of nature and the unreal sheen of technology and modern times.