Play on the Senses Play on the Senses Play on the Senses Play on the Senses

June 30, 2020

Play on the Senses

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This house in Tuticorin by webe design lab is a play of open and enclosed volumes, and light on textured materials casting mystical shadows that builds a coherent flow of spaces.

TUT – The house, in the heart of Tuticorin has a very deciduous character which can be felt as one moves from the rustic exteriors to sleek finished interiors. Courtyards, greenery, and rustic textures finish rule the design of this Tamil Nadu home. Designed as a series of courts gradually moving inwards, this 6,800-square-feet home is a play in open and enclosed volumes. A copper facade at the entry reflects organic patterns and perforations; the structure seamlessly blends with the landscape around. The layout of the builtin site consciously distinguishes the inside and the outside, broken down in between three courtyard spaces – the front, center, and the backcourt. The frontcourt which is open to the road becomes the public space to entertain guests and have chats, the central court is the core of the house with almost all the daily functions happening in that space with ease and the rear court has the sense secluded haven that is used as a recluse.

The use of these courts throughout the day is an effortless symphony and has been ideated for family gatherings and togetherness. The mornings are occupied and served in the frontcourt with a daily dose of news and tea. The afternoons and evenings are split into the levels of the center court with music, chatter, and laughter amidst the sound of nature and water. The backcourt is private with entry to the sleeping spaces. The perforated custom wall and ceiling in the center court giving a sense of outside making way for light and shade that moves with the sun giving transience in the space. Throughout the day, one can trace shadows travelling from east to west through the walls of the house. The spaces in the house are layered to overlook these open spaces creating a unique feeling of inside and outside.

“The exterior is rustic and raw that will age gracefully with time. Copper is durable and a timeless material, which we wanted to capture in the exterior and courtyard space, its durability and maintenance-free from corrosion made us choose this material,” says Karthikeyan the lead architect of the webe design lab, which believes in putting to use material play in most of the firms’ projects and their material and other experimentation are always based on the spatial experience.

The striking signature of the house is in the material that has been used – the contrast of concrete, copper, brass, and wood. The outdoors is characterised by the raw rustic look of concrete, stone, and wood with varying textures that layers to form a harmony. The landscaping is kept to a minimum but enough to accentuate the raw texture of the materials used. The interiors personify a subtle richness with the use of copper and wood in the background of white marble. The interiors are designed with a neutral palette and are susceptible to redecoration, whereas the exterior is rustic and raw that will age gracefully with time.

The metal textures gracefully change its course throughout the house in contrast to each other. The front court has a sense of curvilinear pattern and flows through the open court. The central court is completely geometrical with a dramatic play of light and shade. The brass mural in the central courtyard is inspired by the works of a Japanese artist Matazo Kayama which has a lustrous appeal to it. The moon in the mural camouflages with the landscape and the play of light and shadow in the day but completely seeks rapt attention in the night with its gold lustre on the grey texture of the wall. The Pooja room door pattern is associated with a lotus flower pattern inspired by studio lotus’s work for the Rohit pal store in Delhi.

TUT House builds a coherent flow of visual appeal which gives the house a feeling of richness and a warm tone for a family dwelling. It is a celebration of a seamless juxtaposition of materials, textures, and colours.