Interview with Gantous Arquitectos

I believe architecture to be an independent system that is endowed with an essential own will, a complex mechanism that should be in harmony with nature and in synchronicity with human activity.

I could name many, but in general I'am proud of every project that has positively transformed the life experience of the end users, but as a design team we are always looking forward for the next challenge and to a new perfect creation!

The materials we use vary depending on the project and place. Architects should have an ample knowledge of materials and construction processes to apply in favor of design. As Mies Van Der Rohe said: “There is no design possible without understanding completely beforehand the materials with which you design.”We tend to use materials that are readily available and prefer in the most part they express their true nature.

Every project is approached as an opportunity for uniqueness and authenticity . The site’s topography, surroundings, optimal sun orientation, climate, programmatic needs, client´s special requirements ,budget, local materials, building systems, etc. are taken into account to produce projects that are carefully designed to meet with the clients’ expectations and resulting in intelligent and sustainable architecture. Our studio has no great concern for contemporary stylistic architectural trends, but focuses on simple and serene forms that allow for emphasis on detail. In this manner, seeking to achieve spaces that enrich the human spirit through the fundamental value of respectful communication between nature and the architectural creation.

Our firm is not interested in style or form as a principle, our vision is focused in constant experimentation, investigation and the constant search of options in architectural creation. Since our first projects created more than 25 years ago, we have changed and evolved and surely we will keep on doing it; our goal in regard to formal and spatial expression is, other than seeking a notion of beauty, to favor the existential enjoyment and well being of man.

Mexico City. Cultural heritage is always a factor that determines design. Evidently humankind's development has always been a certain kind of globalization process; migrations, conquests, colonizations, commerce, communications, etc. Due to them, the different inhabitants (ethnic groups) of the world's multiple regions have acquired, kept and many times enriched their own cultural identities. Clearly, a certain degree of revindicating a cultural identity is desirable to preserve its distinction from others to the end of not being absorbed by them. Nevertheless, we need to keep an openness to expand our cultures with all that contributes to their enrichment. We believe that identity in the architectural design process should emanate and develop in the meditated creation of a spatial structure that is loaded with meaning.