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Architects: Studio Air Putih
- Area: 500 m²
- Year: 2011
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Photographs:Lim Ching Wei
Text description provided by the architects. Located in a suburban satellite city 12 miles west of Jakarta, this 10 person architects’ studio occupies a walled rectangular parcel with several pre-existing tress. The studio occupies a corner of the site and is defined by a 4 x 8 m grid of slender steel columns.
A large reflecting pool abuts the structure on two sides and a wooden terrace cuts across the site, dividing the ground – floor plan of the studio. The ground floor houses a double-height work area at the front of the structure and across the terrace a smaller meeting room.
A painted steel chair leads to an upper floor office. Seperated by an exterior area, an additional two storey volume at the back of the site houses a kitchen and lavatory on the ground floor and a servant’s room on the upper storey. While the exterior walls of the ground floor are glass, the upper storey, wider in plan and thus cantilevering over the space below, is clad in panels of glass-reinforced concrete.
A pitched wooden roof with concrete tile cladding covers the entire structure, projecting over studio and service volumes. The eaves of the roof are supported by the two exterior rows of columns, five of which fall within the water. Two inner rows of columns, situated within the glass walls of the ground floor, carry the load of the building to concrete foundations. The pool’s water comes to the edge of the glass perimeter, seemingly doubling the spaces of the studio with its relfection.
The use of glass is intended to maximize the view of the surrounding area : exotic leafy trees in an area of 500m2. The studio’s mass follows the pattern of established shady trees, with two buildings built right among the trees. The green landscape is exposed by the architect through the studio. The setting of the buildings are set by the existing of the trees around the site. The building was split it by two separated building one another. It is separated by existing tree which is located almost in the middle of the site.
The ground floor on the studio, which seems to float, is used for public activities, such as receiving guests, meetings, administrative work and negotiations with clients and suppliers. “We want the leafy trees to be visible to the guests, making them feel at home,’ explains the architect.
The ground floor is efficiently designed with a clean line. There aren’t many ornaments on this floor so that it seems practical, modern and functional. Granite material is installed to exude coolness in the room, as well as a pool that delivers cool air.The second floor on the other hand is more spacious and is utilized as the main building. This is the place where the architects work.
