Casa Trigo by Heliana Arquitectura takes shape among mesquite trees in a residential area of Santiago de Querétaro, Mexico. Designed for a family from Mexico City, the house responds to the need for a serene and functional retreat, using the site’s orientation and topography as the foundation for its architectural direction. Rather than imposing a rigid form on the terrain, the project works with its irregular conditions, allowing the house to develop through a series of volumes, patios, and gardens.
HOUSING
The residence occupies a 768-square-meter site and contains 572 square meters of built area. Its composition relies on separate volumes that connect through open spaces, creating gradual transitions between interior and exterior. This arrangement gives the house a sense of rhythm, with solid elements, voids, shadowed areas, and openings shaping the daily experience of the home. Privacy remains central to the design, yet the architecture never feels closed off. Instead, it directs views carefully toward the natural surroundings and turns the garden into an active part of domestic life.
The entrance sets the tone for the project. A wooden canopy marks the arrival point and guides residents into a vestibule that opens toward the main garden. This moment shifts the experience from the more sober exterior façades to a warmer interior atmosphere, where light, material, and vegetation begin to define the house. The main garden acts as the social center, organizing the home around openness while maintaining a protected feeling.
Material choices give Casa Trigo much of its character. Heliana Arquitectura uses Salam wood, stone, and earth-toned plaster finishes to create a calm and tactile environment. These materials soften the volume of the house and connect it to the dry, natural quality of the Querétaro setting. The façades carry a restrained presence, while the interior introduces warmth through exposed beams, wood surfaces, and framed garden views. The contrast gives the project a composed exterior and a more intimate domestic core.
Inside, the social areas maintain a close relationship with the landscape. The living room, dining room, and kitchen connect visually with the exterior through large windows, allowing natural light to move through the house and giving the family a constant connection to the surrounding gardens. The openness of these spaces creates a feeling of continuity, where daily routines unfold alongside the changing light and vegetation outside.
The bedrooms follow the same logic with a quieter tone. Each room looks toward its own garden, creating individual moments of privacy and calm. This decision gives the private areas a direct connection to nature without exposing them to the full activity of the house. The gardens work as spatial buffers, visual anchors, and sources of light, reinforcing the project’s balance between openness and retreat.
Casa Trigo succeeds through its careful control of atmosphere. Its architecture avoids excess and focuses on proportion, movement, and material presence. The volumes respond to the land, the patios guide circulation, and the gardens shape the emotional rhythm of the home. Under the direction of Heliana Echavarría, Heliana Arquitectura creates a residence that supports family life through calm, function, and a strong connection to place.
Completed in 2026, Casa Trigo brings together architecture, landscape, and daily living with clarity and restraint. With photography by Ariadna Polo, the project presents a home shaped by light, texture, and the stillness of its Querétaro setting.
