Bunker-like concrete house built around a courtyard pool

What this concrete house lacks in coziness, it makes up for in sculptural appeal. Designed by Mexico City-based architect Ludwig Godefroy, the Zicatela House, named for a nearby beach in the port town of Puerto Escondido, Mexico, is built like a fortress. And like a port dwelling in ancient times, the home’s design channels “defensive” architecture.

Concrete walls wrap around the house, creating a protected courtyard on the interior. Stepped concrete blocks slant upward like pyramids from the inside, which make the courtyard feel a little like an intimate amphitheater.

Rory Gardiner

“The house is a bunker on the outside, one of those massive concrete structures I used to see in Normandy, where I was born, protecting a Mexican pyramid on the inside, one of those I used to see when I travelled around in Mexico,” Godefroy explains.

The home centers around an almost labyrinthian outdoor space, complete with a shallow pool, narrow walkway, and angled nooks. Inside, continuous concrete walls create a moody atmosphere, contrasted only by sparse wooden furnishings and screens.

Rory Gardiner

Rory Gardiner

Rory Gardiner

Rory Gardiner