Project: Soul Garden House
Architects: Spacefiction Studio
Team: Anusha Dasari
Landscape: Green Leaf Landscape
Location: Hyderabad, India
Area: 3900 sqft.
Year: 2019
Photo credits: Monika Sathe Photography
Text by Spacefiction
The smallest plot size available in most of the residential layouts of the city is about 200 sq yards. A Large requirement on such a small plot called for an introverted solution with a garden at the center, 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. All services were pushed to the south as a buffer to the heat. The living / dining areas surrounding the garden have sliding glass doors to contain the air conditioning.
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 powers the tropical growth of the garden below. The garden also houses a fountain which brings the tropical environment alive with its sound of water. Wherever one is in the house they’re always aware of the elemental nature of the garden.
The façade has operable louvers 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 daytime and when the light shines from within in the evening, they become transparent and shine like a yellow jewel.
The flooring of Soul Garden House is a mixture of yellow & white cement oxide, handmade cement tiles, yellow tandoor and terracotta tiles. The ceilings are left exposed after the de-shuttering of concrete slabs. Walls are mostly white with an occasional yellow highlighter.
