T H E B R I E F The brief was to design a farmhouse as a family home that would provide a getaway from the busy city life and offer a comfortable space where the family could spend quality time together .
The expectation was to create spaces that would enable experiencing the rural landscape in a manner that would create meaningful experiences for the family members by building on the distinctive character of the site, taking inspiration from the unique local elements so that the structure would blend into its context with enough opportunities for the nature to take over .
T H E C O N C E P T The challenge was to identify the spirit of the place and develop a vocabulary that would reflect the essence by creating spaces that would frame the natural elements in a way that would create a meaningful connection for every member in the family .
The other challenge was to create a comfortable living space with all the necessary facilities, which at once has a strong, distinctive, identifiable character but at the same time invisible, almost blending in with the local landscape when seen from a distance .
Butterfly is a symbol of spiritual transformation and change through retreating from the outer world into our inner being by surrounding ourselves in a cocoon .
Using butterfly (which are found abundantly on site) as a metaphor the idea was to envision a space that would create an opportunity to pause, trigger introspection and reflection, a space that would allow the family members to experience the stillness and the vastness of the nature when seen as a backdrop to the playful butterflies .
T H E H O U S E The 5000sqft, 4 bedroom house was therefore strategically positioned on the 11 acres land to specifically capture the unique horse shoe formation of the river around the forest land .
The house was specifically built using locally sourced materials with a form that makes it almost appear as if emerging from the ground when seen from a distance .
