在我们的社会中，我们习惯上认为建筑是一种奢侈品，认为奢侈品是有价值的，同时又是稀缺的。我们同意定义的第一个组成部分，但关于第二点，我们作为建筑师可能没有足够的毅力来建设一个更高质量的环境，无论是在中心内部还是外部。现在，如果我们像布鲁诺•穆尼里(Bruno Munari)那样定义奢侈品，我们会意识到，一般来说，高水平的建筑生产与昂贵材料的不当使用有关，这产生了一种平等差距，以至于好设计的好处只能被那些负担得起的人利用。
In our society we customarily perceive architecture as a luxury, understanding luxury as something valuable and at the same time scarce. We agree with the first component of the definition, but with respect to the second point, we as architects have probably not been persistent enough to build a better quality environment, nor inside or outside the Centres. Now if we define luxury as Bruno Munari does, we realize that, in general, high-level architectural production is associated with improper use of costly materials, which produce an equality gap to the extent that the benefits of good design can only be taken advantage of by those that can afford it.
同样，为了让设计更接近更大比例的人群，我们已经努力了一段时间来改善设计质量和成本之间的关系。为了实现这一点，我们从理性建造应该定义设计法则的假设出发，因此，我们选择了优化低成本和技术简单的建筑系统的物质条件的设计项目。利用建筑材料的尺寸特性，可以充分利用材料，从而减少建筑工程中的时间和成本。
Likewise, and in order to bring design closer to a larger percentage of the population, we have been working for some time to improve the relation between design quality and cost. To accomplish this, we started from the hypothesis that rational construction should define the laws of design and, therefore, we have opted to design projects that optimize the material conditions of building systems that are low-cost and technologically simple. Capitalizing on the dimensional properties of construction materials allows to take advantage of materials so as to reduce the times and costs involved in a work of architecture.
在Hostal Ritoque的案例中，我们对好的、低成本设计的概念关注与客户的愿望和他的预算之间的平衡点相吻合。就像智利经常发生的那样，愿望很远大，预算很紧张。虽然业外人士对建筑成本不熟悉是正常的，但每个人都希望他们一生的工作投资能够满足他们想象力所能达到的所有期望。
In the case of Hostal Ritoque, our conceptual concerns for good, low-cost design coincided with the equilibrium point between the client’s wishes and his budget. As often happens in Chile, wishes were lofty and budget tight. While it’s normal for industry outsiders to be unfamiliar with building costs, everyone expects the investment of their life’s work to meet all of the expectations their imagination can come up with.
因此，为了降低成本，并且因为该项目位于农村地区，我们通过选择当地技术和劳动力开始了该项目。换句话说，我们联系了负责该地区建筑类型的“工匠”——锯开的松木的简单建筑——并根据最常见的当地解决方案创建了一个建筑技术目录。这一决定让我们降低了运输成本和建筑利润率。一旦我们熟悉了建筑系统，第二个关键方面包括优化最常见的木材长度的尺寸。这个度量被定义为影响项目的不同体积的宽度。这一决定本身并没有产生任何节约，但比大多数构造元素(2.4米)更大程度地增加了调整空间的价值。
So, in order to reduce costs and because the project was located in a rural area, we began the project by selecting local technologies and labour. In other words, we contacted the “tradesman” responsible for the construction typology in the area –simple architecture of sawn pine timber- and we created a catalogue of construction techniques based on the most common local solutions. This decision allowed us to reduce transportation costs and construction profit margins. Once we were well versed on the construction system, the second key aspect consisted of optimizing the dimensions of the most common length of wood. This measurement is defined as the width of the way of the different volumes that compromise the project. This decision in itself produced no savings but added value of adjusting spaces to a greater measurement than that of most constructive elements (2.4 m) did.
Hostal Ritoque位于同名海滩的最北端，是在70年代被开发为“开放城市”的瓦尔帕莱索学校。布局分为5个独立的部分:三个是两层的隔间，一个是有公共空间的服务区，一个是业主的公寓。它们各自分布在平面图中，以实现它们之间的独立性，以及朝向景观的最佳方向。
Hostal Ritoque is located in the far north end of the beach of the same name, were in the 70’s was developed the “Open City” of the Valparaiso School. The layout was divided into 5 independent volumes: three for two-story bays, one for service areas with common spaces and one apartment for the owner. They are each distributed in the floor plan to achieve independence between them, and the best orientation towards the landscape.
Architects: Alejandro Soffia, Gabriel Rudolphy
Area: 183 m²
Year: 2014
Photographs: Juan Dúran Sierralta , Pablo Casals Aguirre
Manufacturers: Tulsa, Ferronor, Fisiterm, Impregnadora Laguna, Membrana Miel, Polpaico
Structural Project:José Manuel Morales, Gabriel Rudolphy
Contractor:Juan Tapia, Francisco Tapia, Diego Arenas
Owner:Diego Arenas, Dayenú Vencilla
Site Area:402 m2
Budget:U$ 650/ sqm2
City:Quintero
Country:Chile