Instead of chasing grandeur, TANTAI ARCHITECTS focuses on creating simple architecture that weaves connections between humans, the environment, and Thailand’s Northeast region or Isan wisdom. The studio's design philosophy is conveyed in Living with Nature, an exhibition that not only showcases architectural works but invites viewers to pause, contemplate, and engage in dialogue with nature and Isan culture, the wellspring of the studio's practice.
The Living with Nature exhibition was held at TIME SPACE EXISTENCE organized by the European Cultural Center within Palazzo Mora, a historic venue in Venice, Italy, and was supported by Tourism Authority of Thailand.
A curved black wall at the end of a narrow room creates an atmosphere like a friendly embrace, contrasting with the vast white gallery space. The compact black room invites viewers to move slowly, leave external distractions behind, and focus their attention on the illuminated exhibition elements in the darkness.
At the end of the room is a model of the Southwest House project, glowing beneath an overhead light, an artificial sun that reveals the work's true beauty.
Southwest House is a sleek home that conceals thoughtful design strategies. On the south side, the house has a double-layered wall. The outer layer acts as a shield from the intense heat of the sun, while the inner curved layer channels wind into the multipurpose space at the heart of the home, creating comfortable conditions naturally. The curved wall also serves as a medium between the house and nature, acting as a screen that captures the changing play of light and shadow as the sun moves through time.
The overhead light casts warm illumination onto the Southwest House model like an artificial sun, revealing the house's true beauty, where nature, light, and shadow collaborate to complete the home.
On the side wall are two other projects, The Sunshade House and The 3 Nagas. Gathering in the shade of trees or beneath raised houses to socialize together is a way of life deeply rooted in Isan culture. The Sunshade House project reflects this lifestyle by placing the building on the south side of the plot, shading the multipurpose space to the north so it remains constantly in shadow, enabling comfortable and flexible use similar to the space beneath raised houses or under tree canopies. The building's corner faces southwest to catch cool breezes, reducing the need for mechanical cooling. This is another project where Isan lifestyle and living in harmony with the environment are honored.
The Naga serpent, representing the spirit of nature and the powerful rivers of Isan, inspires the design of The 3 Nagas. The accommodation project overcomes the limitation of lacking river views by transforming the 'Naga' into physical space.
Each room's entrance hall features a curved wall clad in antique green terracotta tiles, topped by a semicircular skylight with a thin layer of water flowing above it. When sunlight strikes the water's surface as it ripples in the wind, dancing patterns of light and shadow appear on the curved wall, symbolizing the sacred Naga and the eternal transformation of the river. Architecture is not merely construction sheltering human life, but something that connects people, nature, and cultural beliefs together.
At the far end of the exhibition, the black wall gently invites visitors to carefully apply shimmering gold leaf layer by layer, transforming the dark room into something radiant. Applying gold leaf to Thai sacred images is a sign of faith and reverence, merging individual efforts into a greater collective spirit. Every touch of applying gold is an absorption of the studio’s philosophy, humble before nature and culture, and valuing collaborative creation to complete their work. The wall's rough texture awakens visitors' sense of touch, emphasizing that everyone is part of creating this work.
Architecture is often seen as armor against undesirable environments, but for TANTAI ARCHITECTS, architecture is the harmonious coexistence of all things. Living with Nature is an exhibition that conveys these philosophies of the studio with simplicity, beauty, and power.
