SUBHA'S HOUSE, AUROVILLE

Domes and exposed brick create a beautiful ambience and space, a very comfortable residential space for habitation in Subha’s house, designed by architect Mona Pingel, located in Yantra community in Auroville. The entrance is through a small curved path, leading one to the small niche space with the main door. One enters the house through the kitchen, a small but cosy space which is just optimum for a small house. A small curved platform in the semicircular wall with a circular window defines the main activity area. To the side, next to the entrance door is a small foldable cantilevered table, which doubles as a dining table for two.

View from the entrance

The external area behind

From this area, one enters the main living area of the house – a double volume space with a domed ceiling in exposed brick. The floor is paved with rough stone flooring giving a smooth rustic feeling. There is even a rock protruding from the ground, which has been retained as such and acts as a seating and a sculpture at the same time. There is a curved cantilevered step which winds up to the first floor. The space is framed with a floor to ceiling sliding window giving beautiful views to the small water body outside and further to the trees behind. A small door recessed inside a wall provides the access to this space. The wall on the right has a large sliding glass door, giving access to the common space with the adjacent house.

The main interior space with the large window

View of the dome

The Kitchen

One feels totally secluded and private in the space, totally cut off from the rest of the world, just to curl up with a book on the cushion on the floor and spend the entire day in this space. The exposed brick, the stone flooring, rough granite ledges, wood frames, all add an earthy character to this space. There is diffused light coming in from the large window on one side, lighting up the entire interiors with good natural light.

The first floor comprises of a single space, which acts as a bedroom with one side of the domed space comprised of glass window giving views out to the landscape.  There is a small bookshelf which separates the edge of the slab from the double height volume. A door leads one to a small terrace finished in china mosaic which acts as an external open space.

Cantilevered steps to the first floor

Bedroom in the 1st floor

Circular window in the kitchen

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