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Architects: Studio LAB (Language.Architecture.Body)
- Area: 14000 ft²
- Year: 2023
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Photographs:Kuber Shah
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Manufacturers: Porta Finestra
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Lead Architects: Shonan Purie Trehan, Maitri Mehta, Anjaly Teresa Joseph, Chandini Agarwal, Niranjan Phadtare
Text description provided by the architects. The house embodies a subliminal connection with its surroundings. Sited amongst the ghats around a tranquil lake, this is a weekend home for a dancer and her family. Thoughtfully orientated, the homes unfold in a series of connected pavilions. Each pavilion has its own spatial purpose flowing to the next. Each space holds a unique perspective of the lake view. Designed to awaken with the pulse of nature; life in this home is therapeutic. Set along a north-south axis, the sun registers itself on the east and west-facing skin of the home. The solstice sun rays align with the deliberate color blocks on the living room wall, honoring the universe and time.
One arrives at the breathtaking lake view from a deep veranda. The veranda gives a sense of shelter in the wild outdoors. Just beyond, the half-moon natural stone saltwater pool is encircled by a wraparound deck. A ring of social spaces, the dining pavilion, the living, the kitchen and the verandah pavilion form their own constellation.
At the periphery on either end are clusters of bedrooms. These rooms, although private and quiet, are connected by their vantage points of the lake. Navigation through the house is playful, sensitizing one to the environment. The metal frame structure with expansive glazing is detailed with antique reclaimed timber elements. The sloping roofs float above the enclosures and their adjacent outdoor spaces. Each pavilion has a distinct sense of place. A seamless cast in situ floor connects the multiple spaces. The soft color palate allows the eye to travel gently from the inside to the outside.
The journey of the rainwater is told in the successive sloping roofs. The roof and the ground are designed to detail this flow, emphasizing the change of seasons. The carefully channeled water paths are a narrative of water and land. A reflection of ever-shifting life outside the walls. The roofscape, with its assembly of slopes, pays homage to the undulating hills on the horizon.
This home awakens as a living, breathing entity in conversation with the world outside. The architectural choreography delineates a profound connection with the dwelling's energy and the intricate rhythms of the household. It is an ethereal dance of energies of people and place.
