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Architects: Out & About Architects
- Area: 150 m²
- Year: 2024
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Photographs:DOF Sky | Ground
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Lead Architects: Kitsupphat Na Lampang, Yusuma Ponnsmith
Compact and Climate-Conscious: Enhancing Circulation in a Chiang Mai Home - Flow House is located within a housing estate in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and was designed to explore how circulation can harmonize with the tropical climate and surrounding environment while preserving privacy. Presented with an undeveloped plot amid completed properties, the owner envisioned a compact, one-story home that would offer a seamless and comfortable space for herself and her parents to enjoy in retirement.
As architects working in a tropical climate, our goal is to design a home where every room benefits from full cross-ventilation—a vital feature for keeping the house cool and maximizing natural airflow. This is a key aspect of our climate-responsive strategy, tailored to enhance thermal comfort and energy efficiency in Chiang Mai's environment. Additionally, we sought to create a façade that harmonizes with the surrounding community, using an appropriate scale and materials to minimize visual impact while maintaining security and a strong connection to the garden and surrounding landscape.
During the design process, circulation was identified as a key element in achieving our climate-responsive goal. Since circulation is an inherent feature in all architecture, utilizing this area will result in optimizing space without introducing additional areas. The only circulation in this house is designed as a semi-outdoor space, requiring minimal maintenance. By shaping this circulation as a transition between rooms and nature, spatial quality is enhanced while design functionality is preserved.
With this in mind, the main circulation was placed at the center of the house, running from the front to the back of the property. This straight, linear corridor establishes a gradient of privacy, with increasingly private functions positioned toward the back. In essence, this corridor creates a dynamic interplay between public and private spaces. Along this pathway, we introduced a central concrete block wall as a key element, providing privacy while allowing air to flow through the blocks. This design enables residents to enjoy fresh air, the visual appeal of concrete blocks, and filtered sunlight while ensuring privacy in the living spaces.
