layered concrete facades and tropical vegetation shape maya tower by perkins&will in brazil

Maya is a residential tower in the Midwest that links architecture, climate, and landscape through a design approach rooted in Pantanal environmental conditions. The concept combines the spatial qualities of a house integrated with nature within a vertical structure, dissolving boundaries between interior living and surrounding landscape. The design establishes a direct relationship between the building and a neighboring park, treating landscape, materiality, and circulation as interconnected systems shaping daily experience. High temperatures guide thermal performance, with all vertical and horizontal circulation concentrated along the western facade to act as a climatic buffer. Residential units are placed on more favorable orientations and protected by brise-soleils that filter light and heat, informing the tower’s volumetric composition. The entrance sequence connects the city to a landscaped interior through canopy, voids, illuminated passages, shaded areas, and visual permeability, supported by reflecting pools, vegetation, and exposed concrete, stone, and wood.

"Maya by Perkins&Will is a residential tower in Midwest that explores the relationship between architecture, climate, and landscape through a design approach rooted in the environmental conditions of the Pantanal region. The project was conceived around the idea of combining the spatial qualities of a house integrated with nature within a vertical residential structure, dissolving conventional boundaries between interior living spaces and the surrounding landscape."

"From the outset, the design strategy focused on establishing a direct relationship between the building and the neighboring park. Landscape, materiality, and circulation are treated as interconnected systems that shape the daily experience of the building. In response to the region's high temperatures, thermal performance became a defining element of the architectural composition."

"All vertical and horizontal circulation was concentrated along the western facade, which receives the greatest solar exposure throughout the day. This configuration allows circulation spaces to function as a climatic buffer zone, while the residential units are positioned along more favorable orientations and protected by brise-soleils that filter light and heat. These environmental strategies directly informed the final volumetric composition of the tower."

"The main entrance is organized as a sequence of spatial transitions that connect the city to the landscaped interior environment. A large canopy extends toward the park, while internal voids and illuminated passageways create shaded areas, visual permeability, and moments of openness throughout the circulation sequence. Reflecting pools, abundant vegetation, and the use of exposed concrete, stone, and wood reinforce the tactile and environmental character of the project."

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine