The parti of this detached house reads as a composition of three boxes – two stacked above one another, abutting a third. The latter extrudes along the length of the plot to envelop a 20-metre-long swimming pool, which was a requisite of the client. Similar to Room Without Roof, a house whose pool is internalised by a structural envelope, a concrete portal frames the water body to shape a ‘pool house’. A ceiling of aluminium screens that turn down the portal’s side varies heat and light intensity in the pool, as well as the adjacent spaces.

On the first storey, the living, dining and dry kitchen are given double volumes to match the height of the pool area. One space extends into the other, blurring interior and exterior. The verticality of the living area is mirrored with a timber staircase whose components appear to float above the dry kitchen. The sculptural form begins as cantilevered steps that segue into the mezzanine. The layered elevations of the mezzanine and the subsequent staircase landing are rendered as lightweight elements, with timber strips sandwiched together in a jaunty pattern.

The informal, open character of the mezzanine corresponds with the programs placed here. At one end is an outdoor terrace that connects with the street while the gym caps the other end to combine the workout zones into a connected trajectory. A pleasant view accompanies gym sessions beneath the symbolically energising rust red tone of the aluminium canopy.