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Grass hill with a concrete wall and curved concrete structure

Design Ni Dukaan wraps "citadel-like" house in curved concrete wall

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Multidisciplinary studio Design ni Dukaan has completed a house in Gujarat, India, with a board-formed concrete exterior walls that wrap the home and define courtyard spaces.

Located on a remote site in the municipality of Himmatnagar, the studio designed the undulating enclosing walls as a "second skin" informed by the spaces within.

Entrance to the concrete Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukan with concrete canopy and grass lawn
Board-formed concrete walls wrap the home

"Situated on a mound, the citadel-like compound is bound by peripheral walls comprising two curved and two straight surfaces that are disjointed at their intersections to create points of entry or subtle exits into the adjacent landscape," said Design ni Dukaan.

"In the absence of a strong context, we relied on the client's brief to inspire the design, but his complete disinterest in how the house would look from the outside prompted us to question the very basis of built forms," it continued. "This caused a shift in our perception that resulted in an inside-out approach to the design, wherein the experience of space from within took precedence over the external form."

Wide shot of the exterior of the Enclosure concrete house complex by Design Ni Dukaan
The enclosing wall curves towards the main entrance

Two concrete walls curve towards a main entrance that is covered by a concrete canopy and leads to a central courtyard space.

The kitchen, formal living and dining room, secondary kitchen and dining room, two main bedroom suites and three additional bedroom suites are arranged around this central open space.

Set back from the courtyard are two additional bedroom suites, a gym and a lounge room next to an outdoor swimming pool.

Covered concrete walkway with a swing seat in front of an opening the the wall that overlooks a courtyard
A covered walkway separates interior spaces from the outdoor courtyard

A covered walkway creates a buffer between the outdoor courtyard and indoor spaces, protecting the interior from the harsh tropical sun and hot winds while letting in natural light and ventilation.

Design ni Dukaan added "frames" throughout the home, including a swing seat placed by a large opening that overlooks the courtyard.

At three points in the home, volumes rise above the height of the enclosing wall to second-floor level and accommodate an artist's loft, attic room for the family's grandson and a water tank.

"We imagined them as three sentinels in conversation, floating above a seamless sea of green once the vegetation had reclaimed the concrete," said Design ni Dukaan.

A grass lawn and trees surrounded by a concrete home
Greenery was added to complement the concrete

The studio merged indoor and outdoor spaces using a material palette of textured concrete, white-plastered walls, Kota stone and greenery.

"When the vegetation eventually grows over this backdrop of grey, the boundaries between inside and outside will further dissolve and diminish any notion of form," said Design ni Dukaan.

Double-height living space with concrete walls, wooden-framed windows and and opening leading to a courtyard lawn
The central courtyard lets natural light into the home

The texture of the concrete walls was created by unbolted wooden formwork and the imperfections in its finish informed material choices elsewhere in the house.

"The unpredictable but beautiful texture caused by the shifting and warping of unbolted wooden formwork was fascinating," said the studio.

"We decided to embrace these 'anticipated imperfections' as part of the construction process, even extending this choice to the use of other materials such as the flooring in the corridors, which utilises strips of leftover stone from the interiors to mimic the pattern of the concrete walls."

A living room with polished concrete floors, wood-panelled walls and a grey L-shaped sofa
The home was designed to entertain guests

The neutral colours of the concrete, stone and white walls are punctuated by terracotta-coloured accents, including swimming pool tiles, seating and sculptural objects.

More playful colours were used in some of the bathrooms, which have monochrome green, blue or golden finishes.

Swimming pool with red pool tiles and timber decking in front of a white house
The studio added terracotta-coloured accents

The home was designed for the residents to entertain guests, with a formal lounge opening onto a lawn and a movie theatre in the basement. The house also has a mandir with a depiction of the deity Shreenathji engraved in black granite.

Other examples of concrete homes in India that use central courtyards to keep interior spaces cool in the hot summers include a house in Bharuch designed by Samira Rathod Design Atelier and a home in Chennai by Matharoo Associates.

The photography is by Ishita Sitwala, The Fishy Project.

Project credits:

Principal architect: Ar Veeram Shah
HVAC consultants: Anjaria associates
Structural consultants: Saunrachna Strucon Pvt
Contractor: Vastu Engineers

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More images and plans

Ground floor plan of Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Section drawing of Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Section drawing of Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Section drawing of Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Section drawing of Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Section drawing of Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Interior space with polished concrete floors, round concrete column and an opening leading to a swimming pool
Wet room with red and grey concrete walls and circular skylight
Bathroom with red walls and double sink vanity
A room with board-formed concrete ceiling and wood-frames windows and doors
Outdoor swimming pool with red tiles
Outdoor swimming pool with red tiles next to a white house
Outdoor swimming pool with red tiles next to a white house
Top of a staircase with rounded concrete walls
Wooden doorway in a room with polished concrete floors and concrete walls
Outdoor porch with concrete walls and floors and wood double doors
Outdoor porch with concrete walls and floors
Concrete walkway with white walls and seating built into openings
Outdoor courtyard with white walls and seating built into openings
Coridoor with white walls and concrete ceiling with circular skylights
A covered outdoor walkway next to a courtyard with concrete columns
A covered outdoor walkway next to a courtyard with concrete columns
A bedroom with wood-panelled walls, concrete floors and a red throw over the bed
A bedroom with wood-panelled walls, concrete floors and a red throw over the bed
Bathroom with cream walls, brown-tiled floor and wooden vanity unit
Living area with concrete floors, wood wall panels, a desk and sofa
A wooden opening leading to a shrine
Open-plan living and dining space with concrete structure and a large opening leading to a courtyard
A courtyard with a surrounding concrete structure and a central tree
Grass courtyard with a surrounding covered walkway
Grass courtyard with curved paving and trees
Single-storey white house with a grass garden
A covered walkway with concrete walls and openings overlooking a courtyard
Courtyard next to a white house and concrete exterior wall
A concrete room with a curving concrete staircase
Bedroom with polished concrete floors, white walls and a wooden four-poster bed
Bedroom with an L-shaped sofa and large opening leading to an outdoor courtyard
Covered walkway with board-formed concrete walls
Grass garden in front of a one-storey home with white walls and concrete structure
Aerial view of the Enclosure house by Design Ni Dukaan
Concrete house on a grass mound with a curved exterior wall
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Concrete home with greenery growing over an exterior wall
One-storey concrete home with floor-to-ceiling glazing
Grass garden in front of a concrete home with a winding path
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Exterior of a home on a grass mound with board-formed concrete walls
Monochrome golden bathroom
Monochrome blue bathroom with a skylight
Monochrome green bathroom with a skylight
A living room with concrete walls and floors, wood furniture and an L-shaped sofa
A concrete room with large openings and a coffee table
Covered concrete walkway with a swing seat and an opening in the wall that overlooks an outdoor courtyard
Outdoor courtyard with curved walls and a tree