THE SMALL TOWN TRIAD (#2)

Private Residence at Bellur

Three friends approached us together to design three modern, modest-sized houses on adjacent plots in a small town in Karnataka. After the initial deliberations on the level of connection between the houses, we resorted to the wisdom of the timeless quote ‘Good fences make good neighbors’ and created three individual houses that spoke the same design language to come together as a triad, yet each distinctive enough to stand out on its own. A modernist vocabulary with simple geometries and serene proportions define the exterior of the homes.
For the second home, a duplex 3-bedroom residence for a small family was accommodated on a modest plot area of 30’X36’. A tiny bedroom was required on the ground floor which required moving the puja alcove to the first floor. The kitchen and dining were combined to craft a generous eat-in kitchen. To reduce visual bulk, the cabinetry was distributed in pockets across the room, including within a compact island attached to the dining table and a small seating nook in a corner of the room.
The living and kitchen/dining rooms are arranged along the diagonal axis in an open plan allowing a sense of openness and lightness. Together with the skylight in the kitchen and the metal staircase, an overall feeling of spatial expansiveness is experienced, which belies the site’s compact dimensions. Furniture elements are kept to the minimum with vibrant furnishings and bright accent walls to energize the space and create coziness.
3D-effect laminated panels were used on the exterior to fashion a unique appearance for this building positioned as it is in between the 2 other similar homes. Perforated metal sheets and colored glass elements connect its visual language to the other 2 homes creating a delicate balance of uniqueness and togetherness – much like the spirit of the 3 families occupying the homes.

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