ODOS Architects were appointed by our clients to design a new family home on a tight site located down a narrow laneway in Dublin City Centre. The design responds to its restricted context by creating a central courtyard to maximise the amount of natural light entering the spaces.
This recently completed development consists of a contemporary style interior, rich in texture with a core and the intimate, well-lit courtyard. The roof light, which has also been strategically planned to maximize light and spatial quality, allows the linking areas to benefit from a very carefully considered palette of colors and materials.
The break up of the the building’s main elements, defined in elevation by the horizontal structural lines, help to identify the structure and functions contained behind. The building profile is further strengthened with a deliberately weighted treatment to the openings at first and ground floor level adding to the aura of secrecy as to what’s contained within.
The floor plan of the dwelling is conceived as a flexible pattern or weave of built and unbuilt spaces stitched together around the central circulation route linking the split level accommodation (six plates in total).
These unbuilt or trapped spaces become a series of outdoor rooms, which bring the experience of landscape and foliage into the core of the dwelling and stimulate a strong spatial dialogue between opposing areas. The polished concrete stairwell also acts not only as a physical connector but also allows natural daylight, reflection and shadow to travel throughout the building uninterrupted.