Anupama Kundoo

Here the innovation lies in the definition of the building program for a residential house, as well as the transition spaces between the inside and outside. Borders and transitional spaces are defined in a new way. The attention paid to these spaces creates a deliberate and, if desired, flexible buffer space that can change the territorial enclosure according to the changing time of day or climate.

Trees are integrated to create further spatial compositions and a smoother transition to the nature at large.

The stepped terracing continues from the surrounding terrain, penetrates through and through the house and continues on to the other side. The outside penetrates the inside so to speak. The program for the transition spaces is larger than the enclosed spaces.

The window shutters are a series of options that can be seasonally regulated just as we do with our clothes for providing climatic comfort. The result is a skin that is alive and breathes, and an architecture that is dynamic and responsive to the changing human needs and comfort.

An example of an activity in the transitional space is the dining area. The dining table is built out of a single log of rosewood, which nearly extinct now, and by using no other material even for its joinery. The table is formed so that it can be reassembled to gain the whole log with no wastage.

The floor slab above is also innovative. Terracotta pots used in the local area for cooking, with their use diminishing, has been used as a form work for concrete in an area with no tradition of form-work.

The already reduced energy demands of the house through application of solar passive principles are entirely met by solar photovoltaics for electricity, solar water heater as well as solar pump for water pumping.