Concrete cosmetics for the exposed concrete facades and walls of a villa in Chicago.

Minimalist elegance and innovative use of concrete for a Chicago villa.
Rear entrance of a private residence. The entire exterior façade was coated with a protective, lightly pigmented but transparent glaze. This allowed the typical concrete look to be retained and harmonised with the overall appearance of the building. In addition, defects in the form of cracks were closed in some places.

Location:

Chicago, USA

Object:

Private Villa

Architect:

Tadao Ando
Restoration and concrete cosmetics in the exterior.
The exterior concrete surfaces show. Erosion and ageing caused by Chicago's changeable climate, with very cold, snowy winters and very hot, humid summers.
Partially finished corner of a concrete element.
Condition of a concrete component during restoration. The broken area has already been filled with a mortar whose properties match those of the original concrete.
Completed corner of a concrete element.
Condition of the defect after the specific cosmetic intervention. The broken corner has been repaired to the original level and visually adjusted by appropriate retouching
Vertical yellow-greenish discolouration in concrete.
There was an area of wash-out under the light embedded in the wall, which was noticeable both visually and to the touch. Not only was the concrete surface discoloured, it was also rough and prone to dirt and algae growth. There was also likely to be increased water absorption in this area.
Smoothed and coloured washout to match the immediate surroundings.
A very thin layer of high adhesion mineral mortar was applied to the vertical washout. This smoothed the surface, reducing the area available for dirt deposits and improving water drainage. The mortar was perfectly matched by partially applied paint in various shades of grey.
Filled edge over a trapezoidal joint.
The edge above the trapezoidal joint was mostly broken off and frayed, probably when the formwork panels were removed. Here you can see the intermediate state, where the missing parts have already been completed and re-profiled.
Retouched edge over a Trapetz joint.
The colour of the spatulaed edge was adjusted by partial retouching. By overlaying different colour tones.

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