Earth House

This 2 bedroom house is built for a family and comprises of a ground floor, loft and a terrace. The architecture of this house, be it spatial planning, material, or the style adopted, aims to create an experience of living close to nature. Ample openings, a sweeping verandah, and a loft that bring in abundant light and natural ventilation make the home airy and add a sense of openness and volume. It is also an ideal example of building with natural elements as it is primarily built using earth from the site in various forms - Cobb, Rammed earth, and earth plaster based on function and orientation. The loft is one of the highlights of this house, as it serves multiple purposes. It creates a sense of openness, volume, and light in the house's core, with east-west oriented recycled bottle walls casting long colored shadows on the floor. The roof is flat and a terrace is created in order to offer a space to dry grains which are ultimately stored in the loft. The loft also serves as a sitting and sleeping area to accommodate more people when the need arises. This house construction includes features like thick sculptural cobb walls on the SW corner to act as a Trombe wall absorbing heat and filtering the breeze. The cobb wall is shaded by the verandah on the south-wise side which further buffers the building from the entry of heat. The filler roof slab is made of mud block inserts, Mangalore tile roof along with gable end glass bottle walls. This house design is a mix of contemporary features like modern toilets. At the same time, we have also used locally sourced natural materials and sustainable building practices to ensure that it is eco-friendly and rooted in earth both in build and style.