Since the sensuous Modernism pioneered by Oscar Niemeyer in Brazil, Latin America has become one of the most exciting locations for contemporary architecture in the world. Alejandro Aravena and Paulo Mendes da Rocha, both recent Pritzker Prize winners, are just two very different examples of the wide architectural range, set amid varied climates, social conditions and environments, that has brought international attention to a continent making a name for itself as a centre for innovation and experimentation.

From the dramatic plateaux of the Andes to the lush tropics of the Amazon to the world’s driest desert, the Atacama, the rich range of climates, terrains and cultural influences across Latin America offers significant opportunities to create new residential architecture. This overview showcases the most accomplished and rarely seen contemporary houses, by established names – Isay Weinfeld, Mathias Klotz and Marcio Kogan – as well as the rising talents now receiving recognition on the world stage, including Pezo von Ellrichshausen and Giancarlo Mazzanti.

Following an introduction that sets out the development of Latin American architecture since Niemeyer, the book reveals how each house has gone beyond its brief in stunning and unexpected ways, resulting in buildings that transcend their time and place.