A house modeled after the city
The site for this project is located in a dense residential area on a slightly recessed plot extending away from the street.
The client’s requirements were for a house that would ensure a degree of privacy while also remaining well-lit, comfortable and relaxed. In terms of privacy, we decided to create a space that would remain closed to the exterior while drawing attention to its surrounding conditions as design features, reflecting the external urban environment within it.
Acccordingly, we built four separate buildings on the site, creating a residence where the city continues to manifest itself within the interior of each structure. The complex spatial configuration included several semi-outdoor exterior spaces that recall public plazas or narrow alleyways.
The spatial configuration of the interior features an alley-like layout that extends inwards from the entrance. Ascending the staircase, you emerge into a central plaza that forms the core of the structure. Four tall buildings line the perimeter of the plaza, with the sky visible from the upper portion. Going down the staircase leading from the plaza leads to a Japanese-style room on one side, and a bedroom and bathroom on the other. The floor above the plaza houses, in sequence, the kitchen and dining area, workspace, children’s room, laundry room, and roof balcony.
Each room occupies one entire floor in each building. The layout was inspired by the feeling of crossing streets and passing through public squares in order to get to another building, allowing the inhabitants to cross the “bridges” between each building to move from one room to another.
Three-sided palm trees were planted in the semi-outdoor plazas. These semi-outdoor areas visible from the rooms are light-filled and well-ventilated. From the windows in each room, these areas feel like exterior spaces, bringing light and wind into every room.
