NENÚFAR
Ceará, Brazil
Hospitality / Residential / Masterplanning
A tropical resort masterplan inspired by the water lily, where architecture, landscape and water become a single living ecosystem.
NENÚFAR is a tropical resort shaped by a landscape that already knew where the project should begin.
Set within the natural environment of Atobá, Ceará, Brazil, the masterplan is conceived not as a collection of individual buildings, but as a continuous ecosystem where architecture, water and vegetation become inseparable.
During the rainy season, two natural pools emerge within the site. Rather than treating this seasonal condition as a constraint, the project takes it as its starting point. The pools are retained and reinterpreted as the heart of a larger water landscape, around which villas, bungalows, casitas and shared spaces gradually take their place.
The masterplan explores the possibility of transforming these seasonal pools into semi-natural bodies of water, supported by landscape and water-management strategies that could maintain their presence throughout the year. What begins as a temporary natural condition therefore becomes both an environmental resource and the spatial identity of the resort.
From this relationship with water, the architecture develops organically across the site. Buildings are positioned within the landscape rather than imposed upon it, creating a gradual transition between communal spaces and private retreats while preserving a constant connection to vegetation, water and the tropical environment.
NENÚFAR begins by observing what the landscape already does — and allowing architecture to grow from it.
This gives the Introduction a clear story. Then Design Concept can begin with: “From these two bodies of water, the idea of the water lily emerges…” — which creates a natural continuation instead of repeating the same information.
Concept
Design concept
From the two natural pools, the idea of the water lily emerges.
The water lily is not simply a visual reference for NENÚFAR. Its relationship with water provides the logic from which the masterplan develops. Floating on the surface, its leaves expand outward while remaining connected to a common underlying structure — individual elements that together form a larger living system.
NENÚFAR translates this principle into architecture. The two existing pools become the nuclei of the composition, from which a family of circular and elliptical geometries grows across the landscape. Lagoons, buildings, pathways and gardens develop from the same system, creating a masterplan in which no element is conceived in isolation.
Like the leaves of a water lily, the different parts of the resort maintain their own identity while remaining connected to the whole. Communal spaces gather around the central water landscape, while villas, bungalows and casitas gradually extend toward quieter areas of the site, creating a natural transition from collective experience to privacy.
Water becomes the element that holds the composition together. Bridges and pathways cross between the different clusters, transforming movement through the resort into a continuous journey between architecture, vegetation and water.
The result is not a masterplan shaped like a water lily, but a masterplan that attempts to behave like one — growing from water, connecting individual elements through a shared structure, and adapting architecture to the landscape in which it exists.
Nature is not copied as a shape. Its logic becomes architecture.
Architecture
Film
Cinematic animation of the NENÚFAR tropical resort masterplan, showing its water-lily-inspired lagoons, architecture and surrounding landscape in Ceará, Brazil.
Beyond sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability at NENÚFAR begins by working with the landscape rather than replacing it.
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The masterplan is conceived around the environmental conditions already present on the site. Existing vegetation, seasonal water and the tropical climate become active elements of the design, informing how the resort is organised and how architecture relates to its surroundings.
The two natural pools that emerge during the rainy season are central to this approach. Rather than removing them and introducing an entirely artificial water system, the project explores how these existing basins could be retained, enhanced and transformed into semi-natural lagoons. Integrated rainwater and landscape strategies could help sustain the water system beyond the rainy season, turning a temporary natural condition into part of the environmental infrastructure of the resort.
The architecture follows the same principle of passive response. Buildings are positioned to benefit from natural ventilation, while deep overhangs, shaded terraces and semi-open transitional spaces provide protection from intense solar exposure and create comfortable environments between inside and outside. Vegetation and water contribute further to the local microclimate, reinforcing the relationship between environmental performance and landscape.
The masterplan prioritises pedestrian movement through shaded paths and bridges, while buildings are distributed within the vegetation rather than concentrated into a continuous built mass. This low-density approach allows the tropical landscape to remain the dominant experience of the site.
Material selection is intended to favour locally available, durable and climate-appropriate solutions wherever possible, reducing unnecessary transportation while allowing contemporary architecture to remain connected to the identity and resources of the region.
At NENÚFAR, sustainability is not an additional layer applied to the project. It is the consequence of designing architecture, water and landscape as one interconnected system.
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Preservation of existing landscape
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Passive solar shading
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Natural ventilation
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Deep overhangs and transitional spaces
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Landscape-led microclimate
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Locally appropriate materials
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Reduced development footprint
Project information
Technical information
NENÚFAR is conceived as a low-density resort masterplan in which architecture, landscape, water and circulation operate as a single integrated system.
The development is organised around the two existing seasonal pools and the interconnected lagoon system that grows from them. This water structure establishes the primary geometry of the masterplan, defining the position of accommodation clusters, communal facilities, pedestrian connections and landscaped spaces.
The programme comprises 20 villas, 16 bungalows and 16 casitas, together with a restaurant, yoga terrace, kitesurf facilities and shared leisure spaces. The different accommodation types are distributed across the site according to privacy, views and proximity to the central amenities, creating a gradual transition from active communal areas to quieter residential environments.
Pedestrian circulation is prioritised throughout the resort. A network of shaded paths and lightweight bridges connects the different clusters across the landscape and water, while vehicular access and servicing are organised to minimise their presence within the principal guest experience.
The buildings are conceived as lightweight, climate-responsive structures with generous roof overhangs, shaded terraces and semi-open spaces. The architectural envelope is designed to reduce direct solar exposure while encouraging natural ventilation and maintaining a strong visual and physical connection between interior and exterior.
The modular logic of the accommodation allows a consistent architectural language to be repeated across the development while adapting each building to its specific orientation, relationship with water, vegetation and level of privacy.
Rather than treating infrastructure, landscape and buildings as separate systems, NENÚFAR integrates them within a single masterplan framework generated by the conditions of the site.