A family of five, with the father as a newly retired colonel wanting a retirement home. They wanted a place, that feels cozy and introduces an intimate setting for the children to visit. Briefing requirements from the client were limited yet interesting. A complete re-imagination of their apartment that faces greenery and exudes of natural light. With three bedrooms and toilets, the living -dining anchoring a big kitchen, their requirements were simple - "Guests should feel welcome, light to be exaggerated, utilities to be hidden" and most importantly, "Wood & stone to be salvaged, materials to not be wasted" The large / oddly shaped rooms proved to be a challenge with orienting spaces and adding more functions.
The Interior Design of ‘Earthy Extent', sought to balance materiality and proportions on an existing apartment by intervening surgically in each corner. With critical attention to details, we have reframed volumes, openings - impacting the atmosphere of the space extending surfaces of inside to the outside. Borrowing from the clients' personal experience - as a travelling colonel in the army. An ever so presence with nature remained constant. The house is designed with wide openings, natural textures, open volumes and neatly defined clean edges. Reclaimed wood, with manipulation of common materials like tile, brick. Etc. alters the life and perception of this space. With a perpetual tension b/w what one sees and what one feels. Using wood and lime, the reflection of natural light gets accentuated within the surfaces and volumes. The home is furnished with a combination of bespoke, hand-crafted pieces to create an inviting and cozy presence.
The house truly captures the essence of natural materials. It opens up to a foyer that boasts of natural stone salvaged from clients' ancestral farm. Abutting the foyer, the living room creates a sense of immersion and tranquility providing an immersive intimate experience, against it, a kitchen that exudes natural light - a custom curated full height jaali slides across the span of the entire room and slowly reveals the kitchen behind it. The bedrooms, though oddly shaped, have been designed with see-through / low height partitions with the introduction of foyer spaces that act as small study areas for the house. Each space carries with it, a memory from the clients roots of Rajasthan - buffed by hand, the ancient pratice of 'Araish' gives a different experience throughout the apartment with natural colors mimicing a mud-filled forest or a lush foliage filled tree.