Excerpt: Sky House is a residence designed by the architectural firm MIA Design Studio that connects people and nature through layers. These layers become the main subject of the house, where parents and children can see each other from every room. In combination with our desire is the personality of the owner who loves and enjoys inner-peace and calmness. Therefore, the design team was determined to have a clear idea for the architectural plan, which could promote a deep horizontal and vertical connection between human to human and human to nature in this house.
Project Description
(“Text as submitted by the Architects”)
Saigon is a metropolitan city of Vietnam with the highest density of construction, vehicles and population of the country. With that, followed the booming of urban infrastructure and traffic congestion causing a reduction of green spaces, where people can seek tranquility and sit in harmony with nature to release stress.
Being a part of this urban context, the Sky House location is characterized numerous skyscrapers that surround the site, built close together, creating an uncomfortable scale relation between people and buildings and presenting difficulties when trying to design an “open” and “airy” project.
In combination with our desire is the personality of the owner who loves and enjoys inner-peace and calmness. Therefore, the design team was determined to have a clear idea for the architectural plan, which could promote a deep horizontal and vertical connection between human to human and human to nature in this house.
The solution is to create connections between the spaces so that natural elements can be present and carried through every corner of the house. Without any external influence or intention to maximize areas for unnecessary rooms, the design process started by dividing the house in two parts. The first half is devoted to the sun, wind, water and trees with its empty spaces, while the other half is dedicated for family activities with necessary utilities.
As an alternative to the common approach of opening the four sides of the house, we create a vertical connection between the house and the sky. This approach has allowed the house to receive natural sun light from above and see the changes in weather and daylight hours.
Moreover, the project is not dependable from the surrounding context but has created its immanent landscape. The connection between people and nature has been expressed in many ways while increasing connections between usable spaces through layers. These layers become the main subject of the house, where parents and children can see each other from every room.
This is how architecture can heal people’s soul by harmonizing with nature. “If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere”, said Vincent van Gogh.
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