
THONG HOUSE
NISHIZAWAARCHITECTS
“The perceived quality of life in buildings should come from the geometry and how that geometry connects to human beings”. It was the initial thought we had when being offered to design a row house in Phu My Hung, a new urban development area in the Southern Saigon. This project could be considered as another attempt to find a contemporary living manner in row house typology. The brief was to get rid of the way of living we used to have in common town house, where the staircase in the center along with the corridor to access spaces covered by four walls which isolate people inside his own world. The client is a nuclear family, consisted of the parents and two kids with the explicit wish to have a home fulfilled with natural elements while being able to improve the spiritual connection between each family member.
“建築中感知的生活質量應該來自幾何形狀以及幾何形狀與人類的聯繫”。這是我們被邀請在西貢南部新的城市開發區富美興設計排屋時的最初想法。這個項目可以被認為是在排屋類型學中尋找現代生活方式的另一種嘗試。簡單說是擺脫我們過去在普通聯排別墅中的生活方式,在那裡中央的樓梯和走廊可以進入被四堵牆覆蓋的空間,這些空間將人們隔離在他自己的世界中。客戶是一個核心家庭,由父母和兩個孩子組成,他們明確希望擁有一個充滿自然元素的家,同時能夠改善每個家庭成員之間的精神聯繫
Therefore, in a general view, the house looks like a composition of cubes as the private rooms while the spaces created under the shifting volumes will become the public areas for the family. The bold section plan which collateralized circulation, privacy, and activities-control, could be used to decide the function in each voids and volumes. Continuously, a circulation as a silk ribbon is consequently created to connect all spaces together and tighten the relationship of spaces. From the main entrance, a narrow covered passageway introduces people to a 5-meter-height living space with the rotating door system at the end of the house. This system would be opened to the backyard garden and instantly fulfilled by wind provided through the tunnel. The living space and the dining area both expands vertically, through a double height, which helps to harmonize the public spaces inside the house with the outdoor impression.
以流通、隱私和活動控制為前提的粗體剖面圖可以用來決定每個空間和體積的功能。不斷地,創造出絲帶般的循環,將所有空間連接在一起,拉緊空間的關係。從主入口,一條狹窄的有蓋通道將人們引入了一個 5 米高的居住空間,在房子的盡頭設有旋轉門系統。該系統將向後院花園開放,並通過隧道立即實現營造的風。起居空間和用餐區都通過雙高垂直擴展,這有助於使房屋內的公共空間與室外印象相協調。

Along the straight flight steel staircase, some floating private volumes such as library, space for the guest, and children space could gradually be seen. The master bedroom with the private common space in the fourth floor, are connected by a stone pavement that overcomes the garden which has been landscaped with indigenous plant and the top light above. The other utilities are arranged to be in the top floor. The rooftop garden provides outdoor space for the family to enjoy the night life in this new urban area. From the beginning till the end, the staircase – as the spine of the house lets us involve in a non-stop adventure to discover different places throughout the house.
沿著直通的鋼梯,漸漸可以看到圖書館、賓客空間、兒童空間等一些浮動的私人空間。主臥室與四樓的私人公共空間,由一條石頭路面連接起來,它克服了用本地植物和上面的頂燈進行美化的花園。其他公用設施被安排在頂層。屋頂花園為家庭提供了戶外空間,在這個新城區享受夜生活。從頭到尾,樓梯——作為房子的脊梁讓我們參與到一個不間斷的冒險中去發現整個房子的不同地方。

The architecture takes advantage of two fronts, east and south. On one side which is also the main elevation, is to the sun, the other has a magnificent view to the public park of the ward. Into a consistent dialogue with the next-door landscape, large openings in the southern side are proposed to enjoy the spectacular scenery of enormous plantings from the parks, and witness the seasonally qualitative change throughout the years. The main elevation, also indicates clearly the concept of geometry, while the volumes are mostly covered by wooden louver to absorb an amount of the sun heat before coming inside the house, the rotating door system covering the second floor void, becomes the gate between the outside and inside of the house. When all the doors are opened, the nature could be invited to flow inside and later on, the outdoor feeling would be provided for the whole building. By that meaning, the natural elements are always welcomed to be one part of the house as the client’s request.
該建築利用了東、南兩個方面的優勢。一側也是主要立面,面向太陽,另一側可欣賞到承是區域公共公園的壯麗景色。作為與隔壁景觀的一致對話,南側的大型開口被展現,以欣賞公園巨大種植的壯觀景色,並見證多年來的季節性質變。主立面,也清楚地表明了幾何的概念,而體積大多被木製百葉窗覆蓋,以在進入房屋之前吸收一定量的太陽熱量,覆蓋二樓空隙的旋轉門系統,成為之間的大門屋外和屋內。當所有的門都打開時,自然可以被引到裡面流動,然後,整個建築就會有戶外的感覺。從這個意義上說,自然元素總是被歡迎作為客戶的要求成為房子的一部分。


We also have the practice that speculated on the idea to imitate the leaf-pattern and operate it as a decorative but still functional element. The outdoor wooden panels, which are externally arranged in checkerboard pattern to express the main concept of stacking and shifting volumes, become fruitful with the leaf-pattern carved in and through, one by one. On the other hand, the internal louvers can be rotated so as to adjust upon the sunlight. The exposed concrete floor become more interesting with the “carpet” made with the leaf-pattern terrazzo. Moreover, the furniture itself is another way to increase the variety of pattern in interior design. The brutal feeling, with this meticulous detail could somehow strongly strike the eye in aesthetic sense.
我們也有工法是模仿葉子圖案並將其作為裝飾,但仍具有功能性的元素的想法的實踐。室外的木板以棋盤格圖案的外部排列,表達了堆疊和移動的主要概念,隨著葉形圖案的雕刻而富有成效。另一方面,內部百葉窗可以旋轉以根據陽光進行調節。外露的混凝土地板因葉紋水磨石製成的“地毯”而變得更加有趣。此外,家具本身也是在室內設計中增加圖案多樣性的另一種方式。這種一絲不苟的細節強力感,以某種方式在審美上能強烈地吸引目光。

This architecture offers an interpretation of a fresh new lifestyle for young families in the modern tropical city. In another way, it could be considered as the cross point of modern and natural life which can be perfectly compatible with each other.
這種建築為現代熱帶城市的年輕家庭提供了一種全新的生活方式的詮釋。換句話說,它可以被認為是現代生活與自然生活的交匯點,可以完美地相互兼容。