Built on a small plot size of 170m² in India’s Hyderabad city, this residential project by Spacefiction Studio, defies the compact site. One of the biggest requirements on such a small plot called for an introverted solution with a garden at the centre, around which the rest of the spaces function. This garden was lifted up to accommodate parking, a room for the domestic help, and a games room on the stilt floor. An extra room was added on the terrace for guests. The built-up area is 362m².
The service areas were pushed to the south to create a buffer zone from the harsh heat. The living and dining areas surrounding the garden have operable, sliding glass doors to contain the air conditioning. When these are open the whole length of the house behaves as a single space connected by the garden. Two bedrooms are located on the upper level connected by a corridor with a concrete bench.
The central double-height court is covered with mild steel, with laser-cut perforations, parametrically designed to create privacy. The perforations are smaller where the adjacent building has an opening looking into the court and larger, where the building has a blank wall.
This system is covered with glass on top and stainless steel mesh on the side as a protection from rain and insects. The filtered light through this system powers the tropical growth of the garden below. A cutout allows light all the way to the games room in the basement below. The garden also houses a fountain that brings the tropical environment alive with its sound of water.
The master bedroom has an attached balcony that opens up inwards onto the garden below. The wardrobe features handmade cane work, a fast-vanishing craft practice. The attached toilet is made transparent so the planters inside are visible, lit from the skylight above.
The children’s bedroom has a balcony that opens onto the east. A play nook is integrated into the wardrobe which looks down onto the garden. The study room attached has a planter under a slit skylight which forms a focal point as one enters the room. The study area is lit with the eastern sun in the mornings which filters through the perforated screen and hits the study desk.
The façade’s operable louvers are made out of perforated mild steel. This offers a certain amount of privacy from the close proximity neighborhood. They are opaque from the outside during the daytime and when the light shines from within in the evening, they become transparent and shine like a yellow-toned jewel. The flooring is a mixture of yellow and white cement oxide, handmade cement tiles, yellow terracotta tiles. The ceilings are left exposed after the de-shuttering of concrete slabs. The landscape design services were provided by Green Leaf Landscape.
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Photos: Monika Sathe Photography
