Located on the outskirts of the urban parish of Chongón, near Guayaquil, Ecuador, Las Tejedoras Community Productive Development Center was designed by Natura Futura and Bamba Studio to address the needs of a population where women, in particular, face limited opportunities for economic inclusion.
Since 2009, the Young Living Foundation — committed to fostering community potential through education and entrepreneurship — has been running the Young Living Academy, where around 150 underprivileged children study. Many of their mothers participate in local production workshops, giving rise to the Bromelias Women Artisans Organization, focused on developing handmade textiles from natural fibers. Over time, the growing collective created a need for a new, dedicated space.
The project emerged through a transdisciplinary collaboration between the Young Living Foundation, Bromelias, Natura Futura, and Juan Carlos Bamba, with the primary goal of creating a productive center for learning, integration, and the commercialization of artisan products — offering a permanent home for women weavers to practice their craft.
Building processes as learning tools
From the start, the construction process was conceived as a tool for skill-building and social insertion. Several hands-on construction workshops were organized with members of the community and families from the academy, fostering local development and environmental awareness.
The design features a central courtyard planted with endemic vegetation, conceived as a meeting point and exhibition space, framed by two lateral wings and a central nave.
One wing houses theoretical classrooms, a café, and restrooms; the opposite wing includes practical workshops, sleeping areas, storage, and a shop selling products crafted in the central nave — the heart of artisan production.
Architecture rooted in place and community
The building’s front façade is a productive-exhibition gallery that serves both as a filter to the patio and as an open gesture toward the street, while the rear façade closes off for greater security.
The main structural system is built with round teak wood — a material traditionally used for stilt houses in vulnerable regions due to its strength and durability — supporting the roof and upper floor decking.
The walls, made of brickwork laid in a herringbone pattern, gain rigidity through the interlocked construction method. Foldable wooden lattice doors manage ventilation, light, and the relationship between indoor and outdoor spaces.
Located near the rapid urban expansion of Guayaquil, the project offers a counter-narrative: it prioritizes community needs and biodiversity, reintroducing native vegetation like guarumo trees and heliconias, while creating suitable conditions for displaced birds and insects.
Inaugurated in 2023, the center has quickly become a vital platform for economic and social progress, offering workshops on weaving and sustainable agriculture, empowering women to engage in the local economy, and strengthening ties to the natural environment.
Project: Las Tejedoras.
Architecture: Natura Futura + Juan Carlos Bamba.
Location: Chongón, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Completion: 2023
Management and Administration:: Young Living Foundation.
Collaborators: Andrea Ollague, Hector Perlaza, Fundación La Iguana, Bromelias, Andres Ortega.
Lead Constructor: Pablo Ponce.
Photography: JAG Studio.
Graphics: Andres Ortega, Cynthia Rosero.
Drone Photography: Escape Fotografía.
Illustrations: Jaime Peña.
José Fernando Gómez
Born in Babahoyo, Ecuador (1987), José Fernando Gómez holds a degree in Architecture and Urbanism from the University of Guayaquil and a master’s degree in Advanced Architectural Design from Chihuahua, Mexico. Founder of the studio Natura Futura Arquitectura, he has earned nominations from the Americas Prize and the Quito Pan-American Biennale. His work has been exhibited at the Architecture Festival in Bali, Indonesia, and the Biennale of Architecture in Valparaíso, Chile.
Gómez is currently researching urban decoders and the identities of satellite cities. He has won the Quito Pan-American Biennale’s First Prize multiple times (2016, 2018, and 2020) and, alongside Juan Carlos Bamba, received the Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize for Las Tejedoras Center.
Juan Carlos Bamba
Juan Carlos Bamba is an architect from the Technical School of Architecture of Seville and holds an International Ph.D. in Advanced Architectural Projects from the Polytechnic University of Madrid. He currently teaches Architectural Design and directs the LabVIS research group at the Catholic University of Santiago de Guayaquil.
Founder of Bamba Studio, Bamba has created projects like Cabañón DLPM, winner of the Arquia/Próxima Award in 2022 and the International Prize at the 2016 BAQ. Together with Natura Futura, he co-designed Las Tejedoras, winning both the Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize and the Construmat Awards Sustainability Prize in 2024.
Sources: Bamba Studio. Natura Futura. Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize
Natura Futura
José Fernando Gómez
naturafuturarq.com
@naturafuturarq
Bamba Studio
Juan Carlos Bamba
@bambastudioarq
Project by Juan Carlos Bamba
