Firefly House / Volume Matrix Studio

Firefly House / Volume Matrix Studio

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Text description provided by the architects. Since the owner was a child, the family’s main income came from her mother. The owner’s mother’s job was to bring the coconuts from her garden to sell at a floating market. The mother continued this job until the owner grew up and has her own family. After the owner is able to sustain the family, she wants her mother to stop selling coconuts at the floating market, rest, and spend time with her children, therefore, she intends to build a house for her mother to live in and to use as a family gathering place. The site is a coconut garden located in Amphawa district, Samut Songkhram, Thailand. Only 1 Kilometer from the site, there is the Amphawa floating market which is famous for local Thai desserts, and Thai food, and a boat trip along the Mae Klong River to see fireflies.

Because of the intention of the owner and the coconut garden, where the memory of this family exists, the architect proposed to design an architecture that blends in with the context and maintains the coconut garden as much as possible including trees and ditches. The house has been split into a variety of small masses according to its functions so it could be able to fit in the coconut garden. Similar to the traditional Thai house method, the variation of the height of the mass creates terraces that connect each mass, “Tai Thun” is a space under a Thai house that allows the wind to flow into every space.

The house has two floors with an attic space. On the first floor, the kitchen is located next to the entrance foyer. This kitchen is designed to be like a small cafe. There is an area for Grandma to sell coconut products that she used to sell at the floating market and an area for the owner’s sister to teach traditional Thai dessert classes. Next to the kitchen is a walkway surrounded by gardens. This walkway leads to a balcony area in front of Grandma’s master bedroom. The balcony can be used as a living space where the user can enjoy being outside during the day while the preserved gardens and ditches provide atmosphere and privacy to the space.

The main staircase of the house is an exterior stair similar to the traditional Thai house but there will be a high wall that prevents rain from splashing onto the stairs, leaving only water droplets that enhance the atmosphere of the garden house.  Along the wall, there are small openings that frame the garden view and act as a shelf for the owner to place her bonsai trees.  The stair has a wall-mounted structure that creates gaps between the steps so that the wind won’t be blocked. The destination of the stair is a large balcony overlooking a coconut garden which is the beginning of the family’s story. This balcony could be used as a recreation space and a family’s party space.

On the second floor, there are three bedrooms with one shared bathroom. The first room is the owner’s bedroom which can be accessed from the stair landing.  The second room is the kids’ bedroom which is designed to have attic space for the kids to climb up and enjoy the daytime view or stargazing during the night. The room has two layers of windows, the first layer is a sliding glass panel that allows the user to access the balcony or enjoy the garden view from inside. The second layer is the openable decorative perforated metal that blocks direct sunlight. and create a silhouette of the coconut tree.  From the exterior during the night, the interior lighting shines through the perforated metal creating a lighting effect that represents the light of fireflies which enhances the sense of Amphawa district. The third room is the room for the guest, whether it is a relative or a friend of the owner. The bathroom is designed to be a semi-outdoor area. There is a concrete basin outside that can be used both from the bathroom and from the party area while showers and bathtubs that require privacy are located within the interior.

The materials were chosen to convey the concept of a Thai house that uses modern and contemporary methods consisting of three different materials: concrete, wood, and steel. Concrete represents the present. It is applied to the simple building mass to make the building, even more, blend in with the context. This material is mostly used in structures and walls on the first floor of buildings surrounded by garden areas. In addition, coconut wood from the garden is also used as a model for casting concrete walls. After removing the formed wood and burning the coconut fiber attached to the wall, the wall has a unique pattern and the smell of burnt coconut, enhancing the atmosphere of the house. Old wood contains the memories of the original house. Representing the past and Thai house. It was used as a wall, windows, doors, and furniture.  Steel represents contemporariness. It was used as a structure and part of the facade of the upper room that rises above the garden to create a contrast. It is also used as the structure of the wooden wall to make it stronger and easier to maintain.

 “The compatibility of three different materials in a natural context combination of concrete and garden with simple building shapes and sizes. The continuation of the metal sheet’s corrugation with the grooves of the old wooden wall represents the harmony between oldness and newness. “