“During my first visit to the site in San Miguel de Allende, you could feel the magic. It had to be heard, felt, and incorporated into the house—it had to be made visible and palpable,” Mexico City-based architect Roy Azar says. Along with the magic, Azar was also guided by the house’s majestic surroundings—on the shore of a lake, with a landscape of vineyards and mountain peaks behind it.
After 15 years of living in the historic center of San Miguel de Allende, the owner—a French-American entrepreneur—wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle and move to the outskirts of town, in search of a little more tranquility. He asked Azar to design a modern version of a country house. From a blank canvas, the architect conceived a single-story, clean-lined home that spans 10,000 square feet and is arranged in a U shape to maximize views.
“We started the design process at the beginning of the pandemic, when we were all locked down at home and removed from the distractions of daily life. This gave me the luxury to dream about the landscape of the site and reflect on that peaceful panorama, contemporary architectural volumes, and local materials—and then how all three could come together naturally,” Azar explains.
There were three different materials used throughout the house: black concrete, cream limestone, and oak; all selected for their simple purity. “This was the initial palette, which then grew as we added other materials that complemented the primary ones,” he adds.
Obsidian, bronze mosaics, and white marble serve to create focal points in the different spaces. “The design had to merge with the context,” Azar says. “Everything had to be visually luminous and texturally rich.” Bathed in natural light, the house’s foyer welcomes visitors and serves as a smooth transition between outside and inside. It is a free-standing pavilion with perforated walls that allow air to circulate during the day and create dazzling light effects at night. The family room connects to a Zen garden with large black obsidian boulders and magnolia trees. The kitchen looks directly onto the lake and jacaranda trees, and the property also has a 60-foot-long pool.
“The principal bedroom’s placement at the center of the house allows all of its different nooks and corners to be close at hand. The unique dressing room, lined with large windows and sitting under a large dome, lets you track the movement of the sun over the course of the day, while at the back there’s a space for reading, naps, and meditation,” the architect says. Other visual surprises are provided by interior courtyards and water features, which continue the design’s goal of merging indoors and outdoors. “There is no space left to chance. Everything fits together and has a reason for being the way it is,” he says.
At once elegant, comfortable, and functional, the furniture and lamps were chosen to complement the architecture. Furniture by Italian designer Pietro Franceschini, fabrics by Pierre Frey, a handcrafted rug, pieces by Taller de Obsidiana, and items from other leading designers and studios, adorn this home.
Everything here was carefully planned to awaken the senses, and the main protagonists are the natural elements. “In this house, time stops to live in complete tranquility,” Azar concludes.