The Endless Summer Dream
On entering the house through the heroic sunburst door with solid brass handles, a serene sound of water rippling over brass lotuses, lot of natural light coming in, statuario marble laid at your feet, and a passage that leads your eyes to the temple door, awaits you. Entertaining and hosting is the heart of the home as evidenced by the formal living, family room and dining area opening up into the court.
Space Utilization
The ground floor houses the Home office overlooking the brass lotus water body and a green wall that meets a skylight. The formal living is placed right there, with a beautiful entrance of 2 symmetric doors adorning contemporary gold brushed metal work enveloping glass. A passage leads to the family room, overlooking the court through sliding and foldable doors making the space open.
In the formal living, the wooden clad sloping ceiling gives an expansive look and a sense of spaciousness, as far as ceiling space is concerned, while being accompanied with floor to lintel windows that open up into the court.
Decor
As every great design begins with an even better story, this would then guide us in the overall design of the home, enabling us to balance the connections between intimate private spaces and communal spaces in a way that harmoniously reflects the family culture.
For B&A, the challenge was designing a house to accommodate four generations: the client and his elderly parents, his son and daughter in law and 2 grandsons.
Drawing inspiration from the traditional Chinese quadrangle house, or si he Yuan, the design is structured and not overly flamboyant, a trait that's said to be characteristic of the client. Symmetry and hierarchy reign as the bedrooms and private areas are spread across the two upper floors, arranged hierarchically with the master bedroom at the top, and children's rooms at the lower levels – reflective of the traditional family order and structure.
This includes a space where he could host business associates, extended family and extended family and friends, as well as features such as a Hobby Area, Gentleman's Lounge, an informal room, and 7 bedrooms.