{"id":193239,"date":"2022-02-08T17:22:26","date_gmt":"2022-02-08T22:22:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/interiordesign.net\/?post_type=id_project&p=193239"},"modified":"2024-01-04T10:38:04","modified_gmt":"2024-01-04T15:38:04","slug":"ruben-valdez-yashar-yektajo-architects-and-b-huber-turn-up-the-heat-with-a-desert-inspired-resort-in-baja-california-sur-mexico","status":"publish","type":"id_project","link":"https:\/\/interiordesign.net\/projects\/ruben-valdez-yashar-yektajo-architects-and-b-huber-turn-up-the-heat-with-a-desert-inspired-resort-in-baja-california-sur-mexico\/","title":{"rendered":"Rub\u00e9n Valdez, Yashar Yektajo Architects, and B-Huber Turn Up the Heat With a Desert-Inspired Resort in Baja California Sur, Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\"At
At Paradero Todos Santos, a new 35-room resort and spa in Baja California Sur, Mexico, by Rub\u00e9n Valdez, Yashar Yektajo Architects, and interior design studio B-Huber, a half-moon pool deck of poured-in-place concrete embraces the surrounding landscape.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n

February 8, 2022<\/p>\n\n\n

Words: <\/span>Raul Barreneche<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photography: <\/span>Nathalie Krag\/Living Inside, Production Courtesy of Tami Christiansen\/Living Inside<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

Rub\u00e9n Valdez, Yashar Yektajo Architects, and B-Huber Turn Up the Heat With a Desert-Inspired Resort in Baja California Sur, Mexico<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Louis Kahn meets the casbah. Architecturally, that\u2019s the vibe at Paradero Todos Santos, a new 35-room resort property north of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico: solemn concrete volumes enclosing a 5-acre desert oasis nestled between the rugged Sierra de la Laguna Mountains and the pristine Pacific-coast beach of Las Palmas. With 200-year-old Cardon cacti, thousands of palm trees, and farmland as far as the eye can see, UNESCO has designated the village of Todos Santos a biosphere reserve, one of only two such sites in Baja California Sur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe were looking to create a different relationship with nature than at a typical hotel,\u201d begins architect Rub\u00e9n Valdez<\/a>, who partnered with local firm Yashar Yektajo Architects on the competition-winning proposal for the project, \u201cto express luxury not necessarily as a material idea, but as an experience.\u201d A pair of two-story wings, containing a single flank of guest rooms separated by curving staircases open to the sky, frame a courtyard garden. There, low concrete pavilions housing an open-air restaurant and the Ojo de Agua Spa are tucked among the towering palms and low-slung desert grasses and cacti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"A
A daybed nook in a guest room overlooks the Sierra de la Laguna Mountain range.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"Hammocklike
Hammocklike nets in upper-level rooms afford views of 200-year-old Cardon cacti and nighttime stargazing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

This rethinking of luxury synchs with the ethos of Paradero Hotels<\/a>, a fledgling Mexico City\u2013based hospitality company focused on creating community-minded and adventure-centric inns. At the Todos Santos property, Paradero\u2019s first, experiences include surfing, hiking, mountain biking, farming and gardening talks, visits to local artists\u2019 studios, and taco-tasting tours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The guest-room volumes wrap around a xeriscape garden by Polen, a women-led landscape architecture firm based in Mexico City.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Valdez and Yashar Yektajo drew inspiration from the cloisters that Jesuit missionaries from Spain established throughout Baja California in the 17th and 18th centuries. Occupants set up farms in the courtyards of these remote compounds to protect themselves and their crops from animals. For Paradero Todos Santos, the architects turned this historic precedent inside-out, with guest rooms turning their backs to the courtyard gardens toward broad vistas of the rugged landscape. \u201cThe Spanish created this typology to protect themselves from nature, but we did the opposite, completely opening to the landscape,\u201d notes Valdez, who splits his time between his studio in Lausanne, Switzerland, and projects around Mexico. \u201cWe minimized the building footprint and maximized the gardens,\u201d Yektajo explains. \u201cIt\u2019s a compact framework but it feels quite generous.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"Curving
Curving concrete volumes define the courtyard side of the guest-room wings. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"Restrooms
Restrooms serving the restaurant and pool area feature a poured-concrete sink \nand a custom metal-framed mirror.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Collaborating with Valdez and Yektajo was designer Bibiana Huber, a former classmate of Valdez\u2019s at the Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey and CEO and creative director of Guadalajara-based studio B-Huber<\/a>. In the project\u2019s early days, the three worked together to figure out the tonality of the poured-in-place concrete that dominates the architecture of Paradero. \u201cWe thought it was important that the buildings feel like they emerged from the earth,\u201d Huber states. Adding to the effect are spaces like Ojo de Agua\u2019s garden pavilions, where floors are simply compacted earth\u2014no concrete or tile of any kind. The approach complements the spa\u2019s focus on ancient Mexican healing traditions, such as sound healing and Temazcal ceremonies, and amenities like hot and cold plunge pools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"At
At Paradero Todos Santos, a new 35-room resort and spa in Baja California Sur, Mexico, by Rub\u00e9n Valdez, Yashar Yektajo Architects, and interior design studio B-Huber, a half-moon pool deck of poured-in-place concrete embraces the surrounding landscape.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Not only does the hotel feel firmly rooted in the landscape; being there makes guests feel like they are always outdoors, in nature. The public spaces, including the restaurant, lounge, and spa, are all open to the elements. \u201cThe only properly indoor spaces are the guest rooms,\u201d Valdez says. Even then, visitors must exit their sleeping quarters, through a terrace, to reach the bathroom. It\u2019s a detail the design team concedes is not for everyone, though it has its charms. \u201cIt pushes you to experience the landscape,\u201d Yektajo suggests. \u201cIt\u2019s special in that you don\u2019t see boundaries between inside and outside,\u201d Huber adds. \u201cFor us, luxury is not about shiny materials. It\u2019s about being immersed in nature, being totally connected with the stars.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"A
A custom communal table that encourages interaction among guests outfits the resort\u2019s restaurant.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"Ground-level
Ground-level rooms feature terraces between their sleeping quarters and bathrooms.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"In
In a guest bathroom, a wood-lattice screen offers privacy while creating the feeling of an outdoor shower.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Her subtle, textured furnishings balance Valdez and Yektajo\u2019s admittedly rustic architecture. \u201cAfter a day full of ex\u00adperiences off-site, you want to come home to a comfortable place,\u201d Huber says. \u201cParadero is totally loose\u2014comfortable and chic in a feet-in-the-sand kind of way.\u201d Her firm designed nearly all the hotel\u2019s furniture, textiles, and lamps. Most was handcrafted in Mexico, including woven throws and duvets from Oaxaca, palm rugs and rattan lamps from Jalisco, and lamps from a town near Guadalajara. Their chromatic tones draw from the subtle palette of the surrounding landscape. \u201cEverything is neutral, but with touches of color that echo the greens of the vegetation, the grays of the earth, the colors of the stones and mountains,\u201d Huber continues. \u201cIt blends together all the senses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The open-air lounge features custom leather armchairs based on mid-century Mexican designs and hammered copper cocktail tables reminiscent of a handcrafts style from Mexico\u2019s Santa Clara del Cobre Michoac\u00e1n.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Social interaction is highly encouraged at Paradero Todos Santos, as evidenced by elements like the restaurant\u2019s communal dining tables and an abundance of ottomans and loungers at poolside that are meant to be easily rearranged for daytime sunning or nighttime cocktails under the abundant stars. \u201cThe experience invites visitors to interact as a community. It feels like a village,\u201d Huber says. \u201cThe architecture of the rooms and pavilions surround and embrace the center, which is where the magic happens.\u201d \u201cA lot of resorts are interchangeable,\u201d concludes Valdez. \u201cBut this one wouldn\u2019t make sense anywhere else.\u201d The familial environment is as much a spirit of the place as the striking Baja California landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guest-room
Guest-room furnishings are textured and minimal, including pendant fixtures made in Mexico of woven wicker and rosa morada wood.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Sculptural
Sculptural rocks and boulders found on-site have been incorporated into the decor of the public spaces.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"The
The pool deck\u2019s custom loungers were designed for portability.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
PROJECT TEAM<\/h6><\/div>\n\n\n\n
B-Huber<\/span><\/a>: Rossana Fernandez; Omar Godinez ; Aldo Ort\u00edz; Martha Fernandez<\/span><\/section>\n\n\n\n
Polen<\/span><\/a>: Landscape Architect<\/span><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n