Private Residence “House of Stories” | The Plan
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Private Residence “House of Stories”

A contemporary cavern

Mathew and Ghosh Architects

Private Residence “House of Stories”
By Caterina Testa -

All clients choose the architect they believe will be able to give physical form to the living space of their imagination, a place that represents their values and public image but also satisfies their need for intimate domestic comfort. With House of Stories, Mathew and Ghosh Architects have translated into architecture the mental spaces of a writer, who also happens to be an architect. The villa is built around an archetypal introspective space, a contemporary cavern into whose darkened interior one plunges out of the glaring Bangalore sunlight to follow a narrative-like itinerary made of intermediate areas, private spaces and secluded niches. A projecting gargoyle protectively signposts the path to the house. Entry is through a zinc wicket door cut into a larger pivoted entrance in which a series of pullies open ventilation louvers. On entering, the visitor is met by an undefined space whose tall tilted walls reach up to the roof where glazed slits project shafts of light onto the smoothed concrete. This burrow-like passageway and a perforated sheet steel walkway leading to the upper story are the equivalent of narrative expedients connecting the different episodes of a single story, in this case the different living spaces of the occupants. At the end of the narrow entrance passageway, the angled walls open into a west facing living area, coming to an abrupt end or shifting position to allow the onward journey through to the other domestic environments. The kitchen and other service areas lie to the east: light filled extensions fitting into the central spine of the house at a break in the inclined concrete walls. The striking architectural features of this singular project are heightened by a series of details. Glazed zenithal slits highlight the structural frame and mark out the transition from the cavernous entrance to the services area on the east side and the night zone to the north. The succession of environments is further underscored by the use of...

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