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Project Details:

Location: Kollam, India

Architect: NO Architects

Footprint: 1,325 square feet

Structural & Civil Engineer: Urban Hive

MEP Engineering: EPUCE Engineering

Cabinetry Design: Kitchen Planet

From the Architect: “The project is a weekend home on the Ashtamudi Lake in the tropics. It is a sustainable house with a minimal footprint that upcycles various spaces, components, and materials from a dilapidated structure that existed on the site. The design retains traces of the existing house while adding new spatial volumes, satisfying the functional requirements of the users.

“The site is located on the intermittent level of a terraced hill, sloping towards the lakeshore with access on the lower level. The site had several tropical trees, which were retained and made part of the new intervention.

“After careful demolition and refurbishment of the selected areas, the structural grid was extended and new walls were added along curved lines, saving the positions of existing trees. This resulted in fluid spaces that merge with the neighboring volumes and nature.

“The newly introduced curved walls are riddled with punctures. The secondary façade that defines the architecture is perforated to `supplement’ these pockets. The freely flowing curved volumes are connected by a floating roof that rests on a layer of clerestory windows. The common spaces like the living room, dining room, and kitchen are placed along the curved spaces, opening up to a deck with views of the backwaters. One circular bedroom is placed along these curves, with an additional deck, along the water’s edge. The other bedroom follows a rectangular geometry, based on the footprint of the retained walls.

“The exterior reflects the rustic rawness of the tropics, allowing the built spaces to be camouflaged amongst the flora. During the summers, the tropical fruit trees produce different varieties of mangoes, jackfruit, rose apple and many other berries, creating a food forest, and inviting birds and squirrels to this home.”