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Spaces flooded with light and vitality are set around three green courtyards and accentuated by the orange tone chosen for surfaces and furnishings, conveying a unique energy with an exotic air
A simple and minimalist form, with a succession of alternating solids and voids that endow this family home in southern India with a unique and carefree pace and beat. The studio LIJO.RENY architects opted for horizontal continuity for The Colour Burst House, in a series of indoor and outdoor spaces laid out on two levels and that merge seamlessly, alternating openings with skylights, glazed expanses and arcaded walkways for full freedom of movement.
"We want to enjoy the view of the rain from every room in the home," the clients told the architects at their first meeting. In response, the design team created three double-height green courtyards. The main rooms are arranged around these, offering close contact not only with the rain but also the light and breeze that vary as the seasons change.
The building is set out at right angles to the street and develops horizontally ‒ a choice based on wind direction and also to make full use of the length of the project site. Walls and volumes extend into the surrounding landscape, becoming one with it: two examples of this are the garage with garden roof and the main entrance lit from above by a skylight. Also interesting is the designers' inclusion of the transition from tropical garden to dry garden around the house perimeter, with shaded and open areas marking the rhythm of alternation between built and non-built spaces.
The home's ground floor presents a dining room, small study and living area, as well as service spaces such as a kitchen, laundry room and garage, plus two bedrooms. These latter both have their own bathroom and walk-in closet, and are separated from the day zone thanks to the spacious courtyards that shield the most intimate part of the home. The upper floor, which is smaller in size than the one below, provides two more double bedrooms with bathrooms. All the bedrooms look out onto a courtyard concealed by luxuriant vegetation. This can be accessed also by people with reduced mobility, as can every other space on the ground floor.
The home's name conjures up the explosion of colour that is the distinctive trait of the design. The spaces are brimming with energy and joy thanks to the tone of orange ‒ used on indoor and outdoor walls, furniture, works of art and furnishings ‒ that complements the green of the plants and stands out on the black, white and grey surfaces.
Besides the metal sculptures by the architects, the interiors include works by various designers and artists, such as Ajay Shah at ASDS and Kopal Kulkarni at Honest Structures, who have created several metal furniture pieces and have also adapted some of their previous designs to the project's specific colour palette. Particularly appealing is the collection of murals inspired again by the theme of rain and developed by the artist Sasi Bhaskaran at Brave New World with fragments of text, poems and folk songs in malayalam (an Indian language spoken mainly in the federated state of Kerala).
Location: Panchavadi, Chavakkad, Kerala, India
Completion: 2022
Client: Private
Building area: 502.94 m2
Architecture, Interior Design and Landscape: LIJO.RENY architects
Structures: Vivek and Sasikumar Associates
Ceramic Tiles: Nexion
Photography by Praveen Mohandas, courtesy of LIJO.RENY architects
