Architect Marko Brajovic was keenly aware of his footprint when building a family retreat outside Paraty, 175 miles from his home in Sao Paulo. The secondary forest near Serra da Bocaina National Park, a biodiverse ecosystem known for its tall, slender, reed-like palms that anchor into the slopes of the hills, has just returned from deforestation.
And with the forest came the populations of monkeys – capuchin monkeys that swing in the tree canopy. It is not surprising that Brajovic, founder of Marko Brajovic workshopwanted to get as close to them as possible.
Brajovic’s design was inspired by the natural setting. Because, he says, the “forest perception” is vertical, the horizon is inverted. ‘The flow of energy, matter and information from the growth of trees leads us in the search for energy and sunlight.’ So he designed an A-frame house with an acute pencil-shaped angle that juts up into the treetops with very little girth.
Photography: Rafael Medeiros, Gustavo Uemura
Photography: Rafael Medeiros, Gustavo Uemura
Photography: Rafael Medeiros, Gustavo Uemura
Photography: Rafael Medeiros, Gustavo Uemura
Photography: Rafael Medeiros, Gustavo Uemura
Photography: Rafael Medeiros, Gustavo Uemura
Brajovic called it Monkey House. To ensure its vertical stability, he built it with a series of thin but dense pillars set deep in the earth like the roots of the Juçara palm. The interlocking wooden components, covered with a skin of zinc, aluminum and silicon, were assembled between the trees, thus avoiding any interference with the native vegetation. They occupy just five meters on one side and six meters on the other – together the interior spaces are 54 m² and the open and covered terraces make up just over half of this.
The wider lower floor has two bedrooms with handmade metal doors, curtains made from fishing nets and side terraces for cross ventilation. Brajovic decorated with bamboo furniture and indigenous Guarani crafts. A generous terrace on the top floor makes the space feel more like an observatory than a vacation home.
Landscaping, says Brajovic, “is simply reforestation. The wild aesthetic was possible by stimulating the natural growth of plants, enhancing the experience of being immersed in a natural context.
When the family does not stay, monkey house is available for rent on Airbnb for $150 per night.
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