Bermingham House
Project Genesis
Sixty years ago, the philosopher and phenomenologist Gaston Bachillard wrote in “The Poetics of Space”, that “Our home is our corner of the world…our first universe, a true cosmos in all senses of the word”. In my case, my first universe and true cosmos was Gamboa, a canal town located in the humid tropical forest at the confluence of the Chagres River and the Panama Canal in the former Panama Canal Zone, a 1,200 km2 North American enclave that was financed, designed, built and operated by the U.S. government for nearly a century, from 1903 until 1999.
In 2005 we were invited to design a single family residence in Gamboa on the remains of a multi- family structure, built in the 1930s, that had been irretrievably damaged during the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989. Of the original three story concrete and timber structure, only the ground floor structure, consisting of reinforced concrete columns and beams, had survived the aggression and the clients wished to build a new home on the existing structure. I had lived my adolescent years in that building and remembered clearly the multi- sensorial experience that I had lived there- the rhythm of the heavy rains on the zinc roof in the rainy season and the peaceful summer breezes that invaded the house through open windows during the dry season, the sound of ship´s horns as they navigated the canal and the shrill whistle of the trains as they travelled to and from the Atlantic and Pacific ports, the flocks of birds that invaded the garden each morning and afternoon and the myriad smells that emanated from the tropical jungle that surrounded us like an impenetrable, incomprehensible and inexplicable blanket. Happily, it was an experience that the clients had also lived in Gamboa and together we decided from the moment of our first encounter that the house should perpetuate those multi- sensorial experiences that we shared, respecting the architectural heritage of the town without reverting to the construction of a replica of it.
Given the size of the original structure, we decided that the enclosed residential areas would occupy only one fourth of the available area, with the other seventy five percent reserved for complimentary services and courtyards that were planted with various native species of shrubs, ground covers and trees to help absorb the solar heat and induce natural ventilation throughout the structure. On the ground floor we arranged the main entrances, children´s game room and bedrooms, garage, laundry, workshop and storerooms around the courtyards. The main shared family area was located on the second floor, where we arranged the double height living/dining area, kitchen, decks, swimming pool and Japanese bath, while the parent´s bedroom suite was located on the third floor, where they enjoy the impressive views of the Canal in the distance.
With the objectives of ensuring perimeter security and facilitating natural ventilation and thermal insulation in the interior spaces, the ground floor has been clad with semi clear acrylic panels and fixed wooden louvers recuperated from demolished Canal Zone houses, while the rest of the house is clad with fixed teak panels and operable, sliding teak louvered doors. These can be “tuned” according to variable climatic conditions, to modulate light and capture prevailing breezes or to protect from rainfall, sun or insects, or simply to be in tune with the lush nature that characterizes this singular universe and true cosmos in every sense of the word.
Area: Interior: 350 m2, Exterior 650 m2
Client: Mr. Eldredge Bermingham and Mrs. Chimene Longwater
Architects: Patrick Dillon/ ENSITU, S.A.
Structural Engineer: O.M. Ramirez y Asociados, S.A.
Mechanical/ Electrical Engineers: Ing. Luis Carlos Gotti
Plumbing Engineers: Ing. Maria Benedito
Contractor: Arq. José Velarde
Building Systems and Materials: The load bearing structural system for the house is reinforced concrete which was integrated into the existing original concrete structure. The original structure required reinforcing in order to bring it up to seismic design requirements and this steel reinforcing has been integrated into the architectural expression on the ground floor. The structure has been clad principally with fixed recycled southern yellow pine timber, teak panels and operable, louvered teak doors. Interior floors are “balsamo” wood, while exterior decks are teak.
