The Courtyard House / MODO Designs
The Courtyard House / MODO Designs
Text description provided by the architects. The site is in a plotting scheme on the outskirts of Ahmedabad on 45,000 sq ft of land. The brief given by the owner was a 4-bedroom house with a living, study, and entertainment area. The owner wanted an open house and hence conceptual layout started with layouts when courtyards and semi-open verandah spaces. Since there were only the owner and his father to be staying while the daughter would be visiting at times, hence it was openness that was preferred over closed secured spaces. The house is an amalgamation of a series of courtyards, such as an entry court, a central court, a dining area court, a shower court, and a pool court making it a very open house allowing natural elements within.
The ground floor is organized around the central courtyard which is an interpretation of the traditional typology of haveli houses of Ahmedabad. However, the contemporary expression is through a series of peripheral courts that allows the central court to connect outside and have an extrovert character. The central court is surrounded by a study area, kitchen and dining area, living area, owner’s bedroom, guest bedroom, and father’s bedroom, while the upper floor is lighter with only the entertainment area and owner’s daughter’s room. The upper terraces overlooking the garden have sit-out spaces in continuation to the entertainment area. The form is visually lighter from the north garden with upper-level mass receding.
The central court and pool court have an operable roof to open or close when desired while the peripheral courts are all open with dense plantations. The material palette is informal and cozy, with roughened black Marquina marble flooring in most spaces and lava stone in the central court. The house uses reclaimed wood extensively which along with the black marble flooring in interior spaces gives a warm and dark mystical ambiance to the spaces. The walls comprise rough wood patterned concrete, lime coat, and wood paneling. The interior has a mix of Western contemporary furniture and customized Indian contemporary furniture.
