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Architects: Ho Khue Architects
- Area: 240 m²
- Year: 2018
Text description provided by the architects. The Soul Home is located in an urban growing suburb of Da Nang, Vietnam. The house is built for a family with 3 generations. The grandfather stayed in northern Vietnam living a simple and hardworking life doing farming. The couple studied and are working in Da Nang i.e Central Vietnam and the kids have always been influenced by modern and western culture while growing up. Visiting their countryside home evokes nostalgic memories of childhood vacations.
The user wanted a modern house while keeping simple and traditional beliefs. A home where the grandfather also feels homely as a village house. It was a challenge to juxtapose the rural and modern believes and lifestyles of members of the family. The private and common spaces of the house are organized differently around a central patio, this design solution was born out of the need to respect each family member’s daily life. The result is an “exploded house”, where the dwelling is composed of isolated volumes.
The private spaces like bedrooms and bathrooms are separated from the common spaces like kitchen, dining and family room. The isolated volumes are connected via a bridge which also encourages movement and visual connection. In order to recreate the essence of a countryside home the spaces have exposed brick finishes; earthy and homely. In Da Nang, winds are very strong throughout the year due to which mainstream houses are always a rigid block and with common walls. The isolated volumes in this design make it challenging to reduce the inner heat of spaces and maintain cool micro-climate.
The green courtyard and roof help in creating a green envelope over the spaces which help in filtering hot and sandy winds keeping the interiors cool. The narrow way from blocks opens up into the courtyard with a waterbody energizing the atmosphere. The horizontal and vertical green on the building can be used for urban farming of local vegetation with fruits, vegetables, herbs etc for a healthy family lifestyle.
The farming will help grandfather keep the essence of his lifestyle helping the family live healthily. The site is located in a plotting scheme, the blocks in the design are surrounded by vegetation within the site which acts as a visual barrier. Over time family becomes wider and so should the house, the separate spaces and blocks encourage each individual to have privacy and personal space. The Soul Home is an attempt to create a module for a sustainable long-lasting house in which many members can live separately but with togetherness.
