The rapid urbanization of major cities in Vietnam has led to a severe shortage of green space, accompanied by social issues such as air pollution and the urban heat island effect. At the very site of the project, urbanization has transformed both the appearance and the way of life of the local community, which was originally a tranquil garden space rooted in an agricultural way of life.
Located in Thanh Tam Parish in HCM City, the house is a peaceful retreat for a family of 4 members, inspired by the homeowners' own love of gardening. The house evokes the traditional three-compartment architecture, a familiar living space once closely tied to local residents.
The house has a living space with the kitchen on the ground floor and 3 bedrooms on the upper floor. It also includes rooftop vegetable gardens, catering to the homeowners' love of gardening.
On the ground floor, the spacious shared living area, with its high ceiling, evokes the traditional three-compartment house. This entire space connects directly to the fruit orchard at the front, welcoming cool breezes from the southeast. Fully opening the front and rear façades of the house along the direction of the prevailing wind, together with passive design strategies, allows air to circulate easily and cools every space throughout the house.
The kitchen, resting, and bathroom areas at the rear of the ground floor open completely onto the garden behind the house, shielded by low walls to provide the necessary privacy. All spaces on the ground floor share the same finished ground level and have no doors, allowing people, as well as sunlight and wind, to move freely throughout the house.
A large skylight cutting across the middle of the house provides sufficient natural light for every space. This natural light draws people together to gather beneath the skylight, beside the statue of the Virgin Mary placed prominently at the heart of the house.
The vertical louvers designed on the façade provide privacy and a sense of security for the bedroom spaces upstairs, as the homeowners had wished. When briefing the architect, the homeowners jokingly said they wanted a living space that was truly safe, one that could help the family weather any life event, whether war or pandemic. The louver system significantly reduces heat radiation while still allowing the upstairs spaces to capture the maximum amount of cool southeast breeze entering the house.
Green vegetable gardens are placed directly above the bedrooms, providing effective thermal insulation. Drawing on the image of gourd and squash trellises, a familiar sight among Vietnamese people, a green trellis garden was designed to bring fresh, cool air to the space below. As a result, family members enjoy peaceful, restful sleep. Throughout the year, the homeowners rarely need to use air conditioning.
The bedrooms are divided using lightweight materials that can be recycled or relocated, making it easy to reconfigure the room layout whenever needed to meet the family's changing needs in the future.
The house was designed to optimize energy savings. The green trellis concept, together with passive design solutions suited to the tropical climate, creates fresh, cool living spaces. Combined with the use of solar panels, the house draws almost no power from the national grid.
Designing a green vegetable trellis on the roof is a simple and easily replicable idea. The architect hopes this idea can inspire other homes, bringing more natural greenery into the city and contributing to a greener urban environment.
Team:
Architect: Cong Sinh Architects
Photography: Hiroyuki Oki
Lead Architect: Vo Quang Thi
