unfettered vision

john lautner, faia John Lautner tended to set his expectations high. He wanted his architecture to nourish clients both mentally and spiritually, as well as satisfy their basic need for shelter. At the Arango House on Mexico’s Acapulco Bay, he realized this grand ambition to glorious effect. The project’s concrete structure envelops its occupants, providing a cave-like feeling of protective enclosure. Massive openings in the home’s bay-facing side supply a simultaneous sensation of freedom. Uninterrupted views of the surrounding water, land, and sky pour in over a built-in moat. As in much of Lautner’s work, rigorous design and engineering help temper the home’s almost outlandish dramatic impact.