On either side of the sitting area’s freestanding fireplace, Casas-designed sofas anchor seating groups that include Sigurd Ressel’s Falcon lounge chair and ottoman on the left, Sergio Rodrigues’s Tonico armchair behind it, and a pair of jacaranda coffee tables by Jorge Zalszupin; to the right, there’s a games area with a pool table.
On either side of the sitting area’s freestanding fireplace, Casas-designed sofas anchor seating groups that include Sigurd Ressel’s Falcon lounge chair and ottoman on the left, Sergio Rodrigues’s Tonico armchair behind it, and a pair of jacaranda coffee tables by Jorge Zalszupin; to the right, there’s a games area with a pool table.

September 13, 2022

Words: Marisa Bartolucci

Photography: Fernando Guerra

This Horse Farm in Brazil Features Design Standouts by Studio Arthur Casas

You might call the fascination humans have for horses “primal.” After all, we have been captivated by them ever since we were cave dwellers and painted their images on the rock walls. Over the ages, they have remained a source of inspiration for artists—and architects. In fact, there may be no more iconic work of Latin American modernism than Cuadra San Cristóbal, a private residence and stable outside Mexico City designed in the 1960s by Luis Barragán, himself an avid equestrian. Stunning as the austere white house is, it’s the stable with its punched-out walls in rosy hues, trough waterfall, and L-shape exercise pool that most beguiles. The spare, artful arrangement of mass, space, and color brilliantly showcases the horses as if they were living sculpture. 

Continuing in that tradition is a new recreation complex that architect Arthur Casas recently completed at Coudelaria Rocas do Vouga, one of Brazil’s leading Lusitano horse studs, in the old colonial municipality of Itu, northwest of Saõ Paulo. The Lusitano is a majestic breed of ancient Portuguese origin, once prized as a war charger and now sought after for competitive sport and personal equitation. Casas’s brief encompassed indoor and outdoor spaces where the client could not only parade his purebreds but also entertain, hold meetings, and provide accommodations for visiting family, friends, and prospective buyers. 

A groom leads a Lusitano past the guesthouse, one of the two new structures that comprise the entertainment and accommodations complex.
A groom leads a Lusitano past the guesthouse, one of the two new structures that comprise the entertainment and accommodations complex.

The architect, who is known for fusing modernist and contemporary styles with tropical flair, responded with a comprehensive scheme that gives a nod to the Mexican master, while being wholly his own. “I always wanted to one day create a work where horses—for me the most beautiful animals—could be part of the scenery,” he confides.  

The Studio Arthur Casas principal is a longtime proponent of sustainable architecture. “If I could, I would create invisible works,” he says, “leaving nature to take the lead.” He studied the site carefully to optimize his plan’s potential for cross ventilation and natural illumination, reducing the need for air conditioning and artificial light. Quick construction was also of the essence, so Casas chose prefabricated steel frames for the structures, shortening building time to a mere 10 months and keeping waste to a minimum. 

The walls of the guesthouse entry are clad in Portuguese azulejo tiles, a nod to the heritage of both the owner and his purebred horses.
The walls of the guesthouse entry are clad in Portuguese azulejo tiles, a nod to the heritage of both the owner and his purebred horses.

Like his horses, the client is of Portuguese descent, and he continues to have strong ties to his ancestral country. With that heritage in mind, Casas conceived the complex as a pair of simple, low-slung buildings—a 9,700-square-foot entertainment pavilion and a 5,400-square-foot guesthouse—replete with courtyards and water features, classic elements in Portugal’s romantic old quintas. While the pavilion and guesthouse are strikingly contemporary in appearance, the materials used inside and out are evocative of those Iberian rural estates, with their stone walls, timber columns and beams, and azulejos, the flamboyantly patterned blue-and-white tin-glazed tiles seen throughout the country. Keen that the complex also blend with the landscape, Casas sourced many of his materials locally and adhered to a palette of earthy tones. The different textures and hues of the rough stone, carbonized pine, and burnt concrete are what gives his design a rustic, yet sophisticated character. 

And sophisticated it is. There is nothing homespun about this complex. Mismatched azulejos cover the walls of the guesthouse entry, their random imagery making for highly stylish abstract murals. The two-story entertainment pavilion has sliding glass walls that open it up completely to a covered barbeque area, flagstone terrace, and stone-lined infinity swimming pool, ideally situated for viewing sunsets. Inside, the 115-foot-long main room reveals itself to be an ultramodern pleasure dome with two sofa-defined seating groups flanking a freestanding fireplace in the sitting area, which features pieces by Brazilian midcentury modernists such as Sergio Rodrigues and Bernardo Figueiredo; a vast sunken dining section outfitted with pillow-strewn banquettes and several tables, including one for 10 people; a games area with a pool table; and a conversation pit–style home theater lined with plush sofas. Additional amenities include a gourmet kitchen, glass-enclosed wine cellar, and, upstairs, a spa, massage room, and gym.  

The guesthouse is equally luxe. It comprises 14 suites, each with a glass-walled bathroom and screened private garden, flanking a spacious gravel patio planted with trees and grasses, a calm reflecting pool at its center. The rooms have sand-plastered walls and, as with the pavilion, highly refined furnishings, some designed by Casas himself. There are also pieces by contemporary São Paulo designer Marcelo Magalhães, whose signature use of discarded tree branches fits the compound’s aesthetic perfectly.

The entry’s patterned tiles are arranged randomly.
The entry’s patterned tiles are arranged randomly.

Handsome as the complex is by day, it’s even more stunning as night falls. Ground-level spotlights bathe the exterior stone walls, accentuating their surface textures, while recessed floodlights in the ceiling softly illuminate the interior, with table and floor lamps providing an additional warm glow. When a fire blazes in the central hearth and the Lusitanos are put through their paces in the gathering dusk outside, guests may well experience the same primal stirrings of wonder that our ancestors must have felt when the flickering firelight played across the horses painted on their cave walls. 

The entertainment pavilion’s sand-plastered ceiling, carbonized-pine paneling, burnt-concrete flooring, and rough-stone walls bring earthy tones and textures inside.
The entertainment pavilion’s sand-plastered ceiling, carbonized-pine paneling, burnt-concrete flooring, and rough-stone walls bring earthy tones and textures inside.
On either side of the sitting area’s freestanding fireplace, Casas-designed sofas anchor seating groups that include Sigurd Ressel’s Falcon lounge chair and ottoman on the left, Sergio Rodrigues’s Tonico armchair behind it, and a pair of jacaranda coffee tables by Jorge Zalszupin; to the right, there’s a games area with a pool table.
On either side of the sitting area’s freestanding fireplace, Casas-designed sofas anchor seating groups that include Sigurd Ressel’s Falcon lounge chair and ottoman on the left, Sergio Rodrigues’s Tonico armchair behind it, and a pair of jacaranda coffee tables by Jorge Zalszupin; to the right, there’s a games area with a pool table.
The conversation pit–style home theater is outfitted with pillow-strewn linen-upholstered sofas, a quartet of Jorge Zalszupin’s Capri side tables topped in travertine and suede cushions, and an Indian wool-and-cotton kilim rug.
The conversation pit–style home theater is outfitted with pillow-strewn linen-upholstered sofas, a quartet of Jorge Zalszupin’s Capri side tables topped in travertine and suede cushions, and an Indian wool-and-cotton kilim rug.
The pavilion roof extends to create a covered barbeque area overlooking the swimming pool.
The pavilion roof extends to create a covered barbeque area overlooking the swimming pool.
Backed by a bar and glass-enclosed wine cellar, the sunken dining area includes built-in banquettes, round tables of Casa’s design surrounded by Bernardo Figueiredo’s cane-seat chairs, and a large family-heirloom table for 10 flanked with Rodrigues’s leather-upholstered Kiko chairs on casters; the stairs on the right lead to the spa, massage room, and gym.
Backed by a bar and glass-enclosed wine cellar, the sunken dining area includes built-in banquettes, round tables of Casa’s design surrounded by Bernardo Figueiredo’s cane-seat chairs, and a large family-heirloom table for 10 flanked with Rodrigues’s leather-upholstered Kiko chairs on casters; the stairs on the right lead to the spa, massage room, and gym.
The 14-suite guesthouse is arranged around a gravel patio that’s planted with trees and grasses and has a reflecting pool at its center.
The 14-suite guesthouse is arranged around a gravel patio that’s planted with trees and grasses and has a reflecting pool at its center.
Sand-plastered walls, carbonized-pine ceiling and millwork, and a hemp rug bring subtle richness to a guest bedroom, as does the tree-branch table lamp by Marcelo Magalhäes.
Sand-plastered walls, carbonized-pine ceiling and millwork, and a hemp rug bring subtle richness to a guest bedroom, as does the tree-branch table lamp by Marcelo Magalhäes.
Surrounded by a screened garden, a guest bathroom is equipped with a Casas-designed sink and fittings.
Surrounded by a screened garden, a guest bathroom is equipped with a Casas-designed sink and fittings.
The dramatically lighted infinity pool is an ideal spot for taking in the sunset.
The dramatically lighted infinity pool is an ideal spot for taking in the sunset.
PROJECT TEAM
Studio Arthur Casas: nara telles, rafael palombo, gabriel leitão, paulina tabet, camila dalloca, marcos retzer, raul valadão, amanda tamburus
renata rilli paisagismo: landscape consultant
mingrone iluminação: lighting consultant
osborne construtora: general contractor
PRODUCT SOURCES
FROM FRONT
viúva lamego: wall tile (entry)
etel design: coffee tables (sitting area), center tables (home theater)
micasa: sofas (sitting area, home theater)
boobam: folded-steel side tables (sitting area, home theater)
dpot: armchair (sitting area), side chairs, bar stool (dining area)
herança cultural design art gallery: lounge chair, ottoman (sitting area), round tables (dining area), table lamp (guest room)
studio objeto: table lamp (sitting area), bench (guest room)
blackball: pool table (games area)
arquivo vivo: caster chairs (dining area)
oswaldo antiques: armchair (guest room)
BY KAMY: RUG
curtains emporium: custom headboard
arthur casas for trousseau: bed cover
deca: sink, sink fittings (bathroom)
l’oeil: chaise longues, side table (swimming pool)
THROUGHOUT
corcovado, kvadratt, uniflex: upholstery and curtain fabric
la novitá: upholstery leather

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