MF+Arquitetos' Casa Celeiro Rises Above a Minas Gerais Reservoir

Filipi and Mariana Oliveira of MF+Arquitetos designed Casa Celeiro, a 1,108 m² waterfront residence in Delfinópolis, Minas Gerais, Brazil, on the shore of a large reservoir. Two right-angled forms divide the program: a north-south upper volume with a pitched glue-laminated timber roof, flanked by covered verandas that provide solar shading and circulation, contains five ensuite bedrooms in a steel-clad core and a principal suite at the northern end with two walls of sliding glazing. A full-height vaulted living room occupies the barn's centre, alongside a small kitchen, gym, utility spaces and a covered terrace. A grand staircase descends east toward the water to a lower level half sunk into the hillside, housing the main kitchen and living room with three sliding glass walls opening onto a pool terrace; its flat concrete roof is planted to disappear from view. A cascade of rough-hewn stone steps, flanked by mature planting, links the upper terrace to the lower pavilion. The lower level also holds a sauna, changing areas, storage and a wine cellar. The architects describe the house as shelter and openness, form and void, permanence and transformation. Fernando Guerra photographed the project.