Residence 414

Few designs set out with such a bold intention. The weight and responsibility of being so absolute is too much of a burden, the result often not that easy on the eye. But, so often, these are the projects that stick in the mind. The level of abstraction is such that one no longer feels required to recognize the object for what it is, apart from the object itself. It is not defined by function. It is defined by form. The developments in technology no longer demand that the form of a particular function needs to follow a certain pattern. So, in its place, the sweeping statements of the design elements themselves dictate the flow of the game.

The severity and discipline with which an object is treated lends it character.  It is where the event that unfolds within the object is held within the perimeters of its boundaries. It may not be perched on a hill top but it still stands apart. Residence 414 is such a case. Strong, confident gestures do not shy away from making a definite statement. The brutal concrete of the parabola almost march across the site, establishing a solid rhythm. They are elevated by the very nature of their pure form. Beneath these inverted vaults are highly unexpected experiences. Glass, floating planes and perforation add to the mesmerizing weight of these gestures as the ceiling climbs and dives at an overwhelming scale. There is something of the monastic rigour in the layout, something reminiscent of cathedrals in the light that penetrates to the interior. Above the private sphere is neatly slotted into the sweeping geometry, which rises at each peak into a volatile desire to ascend further. It is an inhabited object, not a machine for living in. It is a ritual of life laid bare through force of thought.