The clients are a married couple who left their jobs in Shanghai to relocate to their childhood home of Toucheng, Yilan, a town on the northeastern Pacific coast of Taiwan. They were excited to find a small plot that was at an equal distance between the nearby mountains and the magnificent Turtle Island (Guishan Island) to build their family home, and their request for the design was simply to be close to nature without being too far from urban conveniences. The neighborhood is a somewhat ambiguous mix of nature and city, and while its location afforded the clients both environments, there is in reality little in its immediate vicinity. Without a park or beach nearby to directly engage with, the design team had to create a new kind of relationship with nature.

SLOT

The site is a vacant lot slotted in between two other similarly zoned houses. While this is a typical urban condition throughout Taiwan, the constraints of limited access to nature requires a rethinking of how we can engage with the environment, especially with stunning views on all sides.

SITE

The strategy for the site was to maximize the possibility of using the building as an aperture for views not just of the mountains, the island, but also the sky. Yilan is relatively rural, and hence the lack of light pollution allows for stunning views of the night sky.

SHADE

The immediate design problem was to address the challenge of the uncompromising westerly sun. The building front faces the west, where the mountains are coincidentally located. How do we preserve the views while also protecting the house from heat gain and glare? The solution was to create a conceptual veil that provides more shade in the upper floors’ bedrooms, where the clients would be less likely to spend their afternoons, and conversely, to enlarge the viewing window towards the mountains on the lower floors, where the family is more likely to spend their daytimes.

SIGHT

The final result is a happy compromise between the desire to meaningfully engage with Nature’s solar cycles, and the economics of building a simple-budget home. The easterly facades are not impacted by the morning glare, and hence pushed in just enough for optimal shadow cover. The result is full glazing towards Turtle Island. The roof performs as a facade for both day and night. During the day, its sloped green roof is angled away from the western sun, while its buildup provides effective insulation from both winter and summer temperatures. Its angle is also perfect to lie upon, for views towards the ocean as well as the sky.

TEAM CREDITS:
Min Ter Lim, Shih Da Tseng, Michelle M. Wu, Sharyn Hsin-Yu Hwang

COLLABORATOR: HHNL Taipei.

Product Spec Sheet

Were your products used?

Join as a manufacturer to add your products.

Collaborating Firms

Was your firm involved? Add it now.

Team

Were you involved? Add yourself.

Keep Exploring Architizer by Creating a Free Account or Logging in.

House with 3 Facades

Yilan County, Taiwan

Other Projects by MIIM Office for Architecture

Convention and Exhibition Center

Karin Dom Foundation Center for Children with Special Needs

Shueipingwun Park Underground Parking and Landscape Design

Production Automation R&D Center for renowned sports brand

New Centre for Master Builders Association Malaysia (MBAM)

National University of Malaya Green Research Innovation Center

Hsinta Ecological Power Plant Conceptual Design

Regeneration of Tongyeong Dockyard

If Pâtisserie & Creative Studio

House with 3 Facades

Yilan County, Taiwan

Product Spec Sheet

Collaborating Firms

Team