Oppenheim Architecture, the award-winning architecture, interior design and planning firm, is honored to have received the Jury Winner award for Destination Spa and Resort at the Architizer A+ Award gala in May 2016. With entries from over 100 countries, the Architizer A+ Award jury selects one Jury Winner in each award category.

Project Description 

In an ethereal landscape at the edge of desert and sea, this new resort and spa is framed within the founding principles of one of the most timeless and influential civilizations. The monumental architecture of the past celebrated the dead and the heavens above; this architecture celebrates the wonderful possibilities of life on this earth.  Constructed with the land of the land, the symbiosis between building and terrain results in an embrace of natural resources and the universe at large. 
 
Simultaneously establishing itself on the landscape, and receding into the landscape our design plays the counterpoints of presence and absence, the references of above, below and in-between:  establishing balance.  Formally, it is a reversion to geometric primitives that is resonant with the Euclidean landscape of the desert and allows for a timeless monumentality.  A composition that is redolent of the primary shapes of the ancients. Here the topographic transition from the desert dunescapes to the beach creates a welcomed transition from the sand to the sea.  It stays true to the ancient vernacular traditions of in-earth building, having a reverence for the landscape, and the materials of the region.  The nature of the discrete and selective carvings in the earth provides several opportunities for drama and surprise.  Hence gardens, pools, meeting and meditative spaces area all found in the interstitial spaces at the gathering of program.

Our solution equalizes the power on site by establishing a balance of elemental mass, and a composition of bold and simple forms.  There is interplay of solid and void, with a reduction and clarification towards a silent monumentality, where the elements of land, water and sky converge. Designing with the most primitive as well as the latest construction techniques and materials from the most advanced scientific study we have pushed the illusion just within limits of reality.  A vibrant dialogue between built form and landscape, inspired by, and in awe of the power of the desert.

About Oppenheim Architecture 

Oppenheim Architecture is an architecture, interior design, and planning firm based in Miami with an office in New York, and Basel, Switzerland. With over 70 career distinctions, including over 45 AIA Awards, the firm’s work is based on both a physical and spiritual contextual sensitivity, supported by evocative and economic design solutions. OA designs with sensitivity toward man and nature, harmonizing with the surroundings of each context.

The firm’s projects, which span 25 countries, are crafted to establish the perfect balance between artistry and economics — timeless architecture that is as beautiful as it is functional. The firm specializes in mixed-use hotels and resorts, retail, commercial offices, and residential buildings worldwide that all serve to enhance life.

Oppenheim’s large-scale built works include the elegant 50-story Ten Museum Park tower along the downtown Miami waterfront and the 1.6 million square foot multi-tower Net Metropolis commercial complex in Manila, which has the distinction of being the pilot project for the Filipino government’s first ever-national sustainable design program, developed in concert with the U.S. Green Building Council.

Chad Oppenheim’s commitment to green architecture has made him a highly sought after global lecturer and adjunct professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

Project Technical Data 

Project Name:  Destination Spa + Resort

Location:  Confidential

Client:  Confidential

Size:  650 Acres

Architect:  Chad Oppenheim

Project Manager:  Rey Lester

Designers:  Gilbert Attic, Jose Ortez, Olivier Montfort, J.J. Bruyning, Santiago Eliaschev, Charles Michael Arnspiger, Victoria Pineros, Gerald Wood, Kevin McMorris, Kevin Heidorn

Renderings:  Luxigon