Urban & Compact Home Design Solutions
Building on a small city plot does not mean compromising on light, volume, or sustainable living. We focus on volumetric planning to turn tight, challenging footprints into expansive, breathable urban sanctuaries.
This video shows the "Faro" residence, an urban house on a corner plot. The design uses a framed structure with interlocking CSEB bricks and upcycled elements to create a sustainable home that is open to the street yet private.
An alternative design for the "Vault House" on a 15x40 foot plot. This option explores a series of cascading barrel vaults, creating dramatic interior volumes and balconies within a very narrow footprint.
Interior renders for the "Vault House," showing a bright, modern living room and kitchen. The design proves that even on a very small plot, it's possible to create spacious and light-filled living areas.
Renders of the staircase and bedroom for the "Vault House." The design uses exposed brick and large windows to create a warm, industrial-chic aesthetic suitable for a compact urban home.
A video showing the "Casa D" project, a "take-over" project in Thanjavur. The design respects the existing Vastu-driven layout while introducing contemporary and eclectic interior elements suitable for its verdant, tropical location.
About Urban & Compact Living
For small plots, our approach relies on volumetric planning—using split levels, mezzanines, and double-height spaces to artificially expand your interior volume. Rather than pushing walls out, we manipulate vertical planes to capture light and create airflow, ensuring that even a 15-foot frontage feels airy and connected.
Urban plots are frequently compromised by adjacent developments, noise, and boundary constraints. Our practice interprets these limitations not as barriers, but as the core design challenge. We employ ferroconcrete shells and thin composite walls to minimize structural bulk, liberating more floor area for living. Privacy is managed through intelligent facade design—using perforated brick jaali screens or smart fenestration to block neighbor views while admitting filtered daylight.
The Method
Our process begins with an analysis of the site context, wind patterns, and solar path. For compact footprints, we prioritize:
- Vertical Volume: Introducing double-height living areas or split-level mezzanines to trick the eye and increase spatial flow.
- Passive Cooling: Implementing cross-ventilation strategies that allow a small structure to breathe despite dense surroundings.
- Material Honesty: Utilizing Compressed Stabilized Earth Blocks (CSEB) or exposed brick, which provide thermal mass and a reduced carbon footprint, essential for high-density urban living.
Case Studies
Our project 'Faro' serves as a benchmark for this approach. Located on a North and West facing corner plot, we carved out open cantilevered pockets to invite the street into the home, proving that urban density does not require total enclosure. Similarly, our work on the 'Vault House' explored cascading barrel vaults within a 15-foot width, creating dramatic interior volumes that defy the narrow plot constraint. We believe that a sustainable vision is not reserved for farmhouses or rural localities; it is a necessity for the modern, suave city home.
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