Bamboo Temple Hotel / Arquitectura Mixta
For several years, The Best Bamboo has maintained a strong and close business partnership with Arquitectura Mixta. Our blog consistently celebrates noteworthy news in bamboo construction, architecture, and design. Recently, the CEO and a dear friend shared a link to vote for their latest project as the Building of the Year 2023. We hope you enjoy the insights shared in this post and, if impressed, consider casting a positive vote for our friends' stunning creation!
Location: ISLA MUJERES, MEXICO
Architects: Studio Arquitectura Mixta
Construction Area: 593 m²
Construction Area: 6,383 ft ²
Year: 2023
Photographs: Pacha Mother / Adrian Hernandez
Manufacturers: ETFE Films, Galápagos, Grasshopper, Ladybug, Parakeet, Python C, Rhinoceros 3D
Architects from Arquitectura Mixta drew inspiration from the distinctive natural and geographical surroundings of the "Impression Isla Mujeres By Secrets" hotel for their unique & innovative structures. Situated at the southern tip region of Isla Mujeres, Mexico, near the Garrafon Natural Reef Park, the hotel provides breathtaking views of the Caribbean Sea on both sides, offering a rare opportunity to witness sunsets over the sea in Mexico.
Crafted by Arquitectura Mixta, the four Bamboo structures at the hotel beautifully capture the lively hues of the Mexican Caribbean and its abundant life. Besides their tropical shapes and sizes, the structural bamboo develops and inspires a meaningful dialogue, forming a cohesive concept and a unified family through their flowing roofs, transparent elements, fabrics, and the interplay of light and wind.
Arquitectura Mixta's intervention in the hotel encompasses four purpose-driven buildings. On the hotel rooftop, the "Ola" mirrors the biggest ocean waves, housing a DJ booth with bamboo columns resembling coral formations. At ground base level, adjacent to the main pool, the "Wet Bar" and the central "Templo" stand. The Templo will always amaze visitors and draws inspiration from the Mexican Sea Slug (cyphoma gibbosum), found in the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
Interpreting the sea slug's undulating shapes and intricate patterns, Arquitectura Mixta designed an impressive bamboo slat structure with 12-meter high catenary arches. These arches support bamboo fabric layers that conceal a bamboo mobile system generating harmonious sounds as it sways in the wind. The structures, researched and designed in a Bio-Parametric style, employed complex computational processes and specific algorithms, such as Python programming language commonly used in software and web development.
This groundbreaking application of technology involves Python to model mathematical curves simulating sea waves in the roof undulations. Environmental analysis algorithms were then utilized to adapt the structures' shapes and efficiency to rain and solar radiation, ensuring comfort and performance in various climatic conditions. The architects used Galapagos, a tool utilizing genetic optimization algorithms, to optimize the structures' design and identify the most efficient support points. While these processes and technologies are commonly employed by architects working with conventional materials like concrete and metal, this project marks the pioneering use of such technologies in the field of bioconstruction worldwide.
