House # 396 / Architecture Paradigm

Architects: Architecture Paradigm
Area: 8100 ft²
Year: 2024
Photographs: Shamanth Patil
Manufacturers: Bulthaup, Decorons Trinity, Schindler , Schuco, TOTO LTD.
Lead Architects: Manoj Ladhad, Sandeep J, Prajwal Krishna
Category: Houses
Working Drawing & Detail Drawing: Sanskruti Agarwal
Interior: Architecture Paradigm
Structure: Base Engineering Services
Civil Contractor: Adni Project Managers LLP
City: Bangalore
Country: India

House #396 residential project designed by Architecture Paradigm in Bangalore addresses the client’s desire for natural light and spatial openness through a design shaped by site orientation, existing vegetation, and material specificity. The south-facing plot with two sausage trees informed the zoning into longitudinal east and west bands, separating private enclosed functions from open, connected spaces. Primary programs are distributed across the first and second floors, defined by large apertures facing south and skyward. A sunken garden on the ground level, finished with granite and kadapa stone, creates a cavern-like experience with adjustable enclosures. Cantilevered stairs lead to a living area that unfolds from a compact foyer into expansive wood-paneled zones illuminated by controlled apertures. Light and shadow interact with concrete, wood, and white surfaces to produce a chiaroscuro effect. The second floor, accessed by a wood-wrapped metal stair, features wood floors, a red oxide surface spilling from the terrace, and sculpted voids integrated through spiral stairs. The terrace offers ipe wood decking and pergola-covered leisure spaces under a solar roof. The house weaves light, materiality, and sectional shifts into a cohesive spatial response rooted in its suburban context.

The design brief for the house was shaped by the client’s need for a light-filled environment, having previously lived in a dimly lit residence. This requirement, combined with their preference for form-finished concrete that integrates with the surroundings without appearing overly assertive, became the primary driver of the design approach.

The site, situated in a leafy suburban area of Bangalore characterized by detached houses, faces south and features two sausage trees along the footpath adjacent to the road. The orientation of the site and the presence of these trees guided the placement of the building and its internal zoning. A direct connection between the interior and exterior of the house is established through two longitudinal spatial zones positioned to the east and west. The western zone accommodates functions requiring privacy and enclosure, while the eastern zone remains mostly open, enabling an axial connection from the rear to the front of the house. Moreover, the eastern zone is sectionally modulated to facilitate lateral connections across different levels of the home.

The main functional areas of the house are distributed across two levels: the first and second floors. This elevated configuration allows secondary programs to be positioned either beneath or above the main volume of the house. The first and second floors accommodate the living and dining areas, an open kitchen, three bedrooms, and a courtyard. Three large apertures, two oriented to the south and one directed toward the sky, define how the house engages with its external environment. The second floor connects to the terrace through a double-height space, while the ground floor remains detached and is accessed exclusively via an internal lift. The house’s connection to its context is emphasized through a sunken zone and garden at the ground level. This design choice also enables variations in ceiling height for more spatially demanding programs. Black-clad granite walls and black kadapa flooring around the perimeter of the sunken zone and garden, combined with pergola-lined slits, reinforce the sensation of inhabiting an excavated, cavern-like space. In addition, large sliding folding doors on the parking side enclose this area and allow it to be either opened up or enclosed, depending on the client’s needs.

The living room on the first floor is reached by a set of cantilevered bars that function as stairs, introducing both spatial relief and a green visual element in the tightly bounded southeast corner. The house is organized to unfold as a sequence of spaces that balance compactness with openness. From the narrow foyer, movement transitions toward a large wood-paneled wall that separates the western zone from the eastern side. To the left, the living room features a large aperture facing south, framed by the two existing sausage trees. To the right, the courtyard includes an opening directed toward the sky, bringing constant light into the interior regardless of directional changes. The matte black flooring, semi-smooth texture of form-finished concrete, smooth wood-paneled walls, and white surfaces absorb and reflect light from these apertures, generating a chiaroscuro effect with poetic clarity. The trees on the southern edge cast dynamic shadows across the interior spaces.

Light moves through the house in multiple forms, whether dappled, in beams, or as reflections, enabled by the strategic placement of apertures that transform the space into an abstract landscape that is both contemplative and vivid. A large opening at the northeast corner is deliberately positioned to reflect light from the white surface of the neighboring house to the east and to visually connect with nearby small open spaces along the diagonal axis. The L-shaped wall enclosing the courtyard is painted white to intensify the reflection of light from the sky.

The second floor is reached by a metal staircase clad in wood. Wood flooring extends throughout this level, creating a tactile surface that complements the natural materiality of the concrete and wood-paneled walls. A large double-height aperture on the southern side frames the dense foliage of the two trees and the sky. This expansive volume is contrasted by a spiral staircase with habitable voids carved into the wall mass. The contrast is intensified by the red oxide flooring, which flows from the terrace level down to this floor. On the northern side of the space, a courtyard void links to the level below, while a walkable glass skylight connects to the terrace above. Another aperture on the eastern side creates a diagonal visual connection between the family room and the street below.

The terrace spaces are primarily intended for leisure and recreation. One raised deck faces the canopy of a sausage tree, while another open deck is positioned on the north side. Both areas are partially covered with pergolas and topped with a solar roof. The material palette in these spaces is defined by ipe wood decking, oxide flooring, form-finished concrete walls, and painted corten steel surfaces.

The house is designed to make full use of its contextual setting while integrating a variety of natural materials in a manner that is both coherent and distinct. Programmatic spaces are articulated as externally finished volumes, reflecting the same material interplay found throughout the interior. Internal spatial connections foster awareness among the inhabitants, while external linkages firmly root the house within its surrounding environment.