A visually rich embodiment of conceptual Brazilian architecture, built in Miami, Florida as a speculative home forms a challenging body of work to light. Techniques that are viable in Latin America don’t always translate to the United States with ease, so how does one embody a signature style in a new environment?

Asked to collaborate, a Mexican lighting practice was asked to take Brazilian design intent and embody it in US construction technique, and all with a challenging budget typical of a speculative home. The home is, in many ways, defined by its arrival experience – a curving floating ramp spans a pond and up into a floating box home, an assembly of a low-lying residential box, and atop, the living spaces. The ramps curves are marked by ingrade marker lights, matching the lights that surround the residential box and graze the wood screen façade. Within the upper cube, the retro Floridian blockwork wall is backlit, giving relief to the form and illuminating the corridor within.

The public spaces are sparsely lit with a small number of uplights for direct light, pendants, and diffuse task light for the kitchen, organized into a handful of lines. Through the rest of the house, classical modernist technique conceals lighting into coves, mirrors, under vanities and so forth. This use of standard technique allows the lighting to blend into the architectural language, to illuminate sheer curtains as privacy scrims, and to be easily buildable.

In spite of the complex program and form, the lighting’s simplicity and modest budget create the sense of a home nestled into a Florida jungle. Modest light levels and rich contrast create a home for entertaining.