Moveable Walls Amplify Sublime Views For This Costa Rican Home

Surrounded by the jungle and overlooking the ocean, this terrace house features unique foldable walls to foster a stronger connection to nature.

Text by

Michele Koh Morollo

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Located in Santa Teresa, a small, seaside town in Costa Rica’s Puntarenas Province, Ocean Eye has been designed by the award-winning Costa Rican practice Studio Saxe. The two-level home is a series of interwoven terraces that create a dynamic, unexpected relationship between the residents and the surrounding natural landscape.

Thanks to foldable wooden walls, the interstitial terrace spaces blur the lines between what is considered inside and out, fostering a stronger enjoyment and appreciation for Mother Nature.

Here is the initial sketch that evolved into the design of Ocean Eye.

"A series of terraces break down barriers between the different spaces contained within, both vertically and horizontally, while simultaneously connecting the family to the surrounding landscape," says founder of Studio Saxe, Benjamin Garcia Saxe.

Sited on the back of a steep hill, the house is a lightweight and exposed structure with enclosed private rooms at the rear that transition into more open terraces in the front to capture the stunning surrounding views.

"These openings in Ocean Eye have been carefully arranged to allow for the flow of air to move through the house, cooling it naturally in the humid environment."