We create living breathing houses. This is the third experimental house in this series. It started from a story. During a conversation with our client, she said an interesting story about how her daughter, returning from school would tell her friends in the school bus, that the existing concrete house of the 1970s was not her home. From a child's perspective she could never relate her image of a home to that inert box. This narrative guided us in using the universal form of shelter as the image of her home, something which every child can relate to. For a 3000 sqft two storey house with all luxuries of contemporary living, this was our kind of interpretation of home. The pristine white was chosen in response to the tropical sun, as we wanted to explore the various hues of white light. It becomes the perfect canvas for the different iterations of light and darkness that defines tropical spaces. Also white becomes a neutral medium to imbibe the vibrant Indian motifs and textures which add a cultural layer to the subtle lines of architecture. Also a blanket of tropical landscape creates a micro climate that dithers the sharp white planes.
The chiseled house was one of our earliest renovation projects. The original house was constructed 13 years back and had used heavy ornamentation in its architectural expression. The layout had disjointed functions and lacked ventilation. We redesigned the house with a minimal architectural vocabulary based on the functional requirements. The skewed roof form is the outcome of a design process based on functional requirements and structural integrity. Layers of bamboo and other tropical planting, at different strategic points bring about passive cooling, and adds greenery to the house.
