Project: Hill House
Architects: HAA Studio
Location: Khet Prawet, Thailand
Area: 6,221 sf
Year: 2020
Photographs by: Weerapon Singnoi
Hill House by HAA Studio
The Hill House was designed to stand out while blending seamlessly with its natural surroundings. Set against a backdrop of a lake and trees, the house emerges as a white structure on a dark, rocky base, symbolizing a mountain. The gravel walls, bent to mimic natural rock formations, contrast with the sleek, white cantilevered upper level. Dark gray materials on the lower floor enhance the rocky appearance, while aluminum louvers provide privacy on the white upper floor.
The layout elevates private spaces like bedrooms to the top, resembling a modern box perched on a hill, with living spaces below connected to a courtyard and the lake. The design also addresses the tropical climate by using shading and louvers to reduce heat. Hill House achieves the client’s vision of a unique residence that harmonizes with its environment, showcasing a sophisticated blend of context and architecture.
Because the owner of this house wanted a residence that stands out and is unique, the designer architect began the project by considering the context of the location first. With the original environment consisting of a lake and trees, the architects designed the house to become a complete visual extension of its context. A white house on a black rock mountain amidst nature was the answer, relying on the context and the needs of the residents.
By bending the gravel wall back and forth to imitate natural rocks, a form emerged that defied usual geometry, serving as a metaphor for a rocky mountain. This approach distinguished it from the residence, which is a pure white box. Choosing a cantilevered structure to enhance the appearance of the building, combined with reinforced concrete casting techniques to create a thin, sharp look and seamlessly hiding structures such as columns, allowed the result to align with the concept of a white house on a rocky hill as much as possible.
From the creation of such an identity, materials like washed gravel became the first thing everyone noticed when visiting this house. The architects selected materials in dark gray tones, almost black, to serve as the base of the first-floor building. While the second floor is designed as a white box, it is concealed to create privacy by using aluminum louvers in the same color as the house.
The layout of the building is determined by this metaphorical relationship, elevating highly private living areas such as bedrooms to the top, creating a modern box-shaped house. At the same time, activity areas and living spaces are brought below, resembling a hill under the house. All areas are connected to the court next to the building and to the lake behind.
The building is arranged in this way to correspond with the tropical orientation, which receives sunlight from the southwest. The architect decided to use shading from the building and louvers to help reduce heat and sunlight during the day. Through a nuanced blend of contextual responsiveness and architectural design, Hill House not only meets the client’s desire for a unique and outstanding home but also embodies a harmonious integration with its natural surroundings, reflecting a sophisticated dialogue between built form and environment.
