The concept of The Window House starts with two fundamental questions.
This project led by architect Cherng Yih Lee of FORMZERO is sited right on the edge of a reserved tropical forest. The first immediate responses by the architect was to develop a seamless relationship between the house and the nature. “What if, on the contrary, the house owner has expressed no interest in the outdoor space or the nature but rather maximising the interior volume as part of the main design brief? FORMZERO decided to transform this paradoxical situation into an inspirational thought.
Window is probably the most direct element that defines our relationship with the outdoor space. When a house is surrounded by other houses, such relationship is immediately disjoined by just dropping down a curtain. “How can we restore such relationship with the outdoor space without compromising our privacy?” Cherng Yih adds.
To answer these questions, the design concept of The Window House departed with three tectonic approaches through the manipulation of the form and function of window. By doing so, the ultimate aim of this project is to strengthen the house owner’s bonding with the existing context without diluting the design brief.
CONCRETE SHELL
From east to west, this house is wrapped in an additional layer of perforated concrete wall which appears like a shell. Apart from acting as a thermal protection with cross ventilation, the shell is the first layer to control the privacy. Between the house and the concrete shell, multi-level of landscape is inserted in order to create an ambiguous condition which makes the landscape to appear more like an indoor space.
TELESCOPIC FORM
The concrete shell is shaped in a telescopic form. It is tapered at the front, widened towards the forest in both plan and section, like creating a giant window frame to look out to the forest. At the same time the tapered front facade is projected to the street that creates a more human scale house.
WINDOWS FOLLOW FUNCTIONS
Rooms with different functions deserve different windows. To create specific viewing experience for each room, the proportion and the position of each window on the north and south facade are derived out of the function of each room. Instead of imposing an arbitrary aesthetic, the facade therefore becomes a collective expression of each room. In addition to enhancing the quality of framing view, the windows are outlined with deepened eaves, every scenery is captured in a picture frame.
