Balconies shaded by trailing plants front this slender concrete home in Vietnam, which has been designed by local architecture practice X11 Design Studio to "promote a connection between nature and people".
Designed for a three-generation family in Quang Ninh the home is called De Chill House. It features planted yards at either end, a central courtyard with a tree and a rooftop garden that shelter its interiors while creating "peaceful" spaces for its inhabitants.
"Three 'breathing' spaces in the front, back and middle of the house and a void through the vertical axis makes spaces that are in direct contact with natural light and ventilation," explained the studio.
"The atmosphere in the house is gentle, relaxing and pleasant so that people can regain energy after returning from work."
Set back from the street with a paved patio and parking area creating a "buffer zone", wide concrete steps lead through a door alongside a window into the ground floor, where a large living, dining and kitchen space stretches almost the entire length of the plan.
The skylit central courtyard separates the lounge at the front from the kitchen diner to the rear, and at the back of the home a single bedroom looks out onto a private patio space.
On the first floor, two larger bedrooms sit either side of a communal space, and above the second floor landing is flanked by an additional bedroom, worship room and rooftop garden at the rear of the home.
"The skylight in the middle connects the common spaces with the living spaces above...in addition to providing natural light and air convection," explained the studio.
"Green spaces are seamlessly combined with other functions, creating a connection between nature and daily activities."
A spiral staircase of black steel leads from the third floor garden up onto the roof, where an area of planting at the front of the home is sheltered by a slatted metal canopy, intended as a space for the residents to gather together.
Despite not being bordered directly above the ground floor on either side, the home was designed in the style of a typical Vietnamese townhouse, with sheer, windowless walls of rendered concrete forming its side elevations with cut-outs for the rooftop gardens.
Elsewhere in Vietnam, local studio Nguyen Khai Architects & Associates also celebrated a connection to nature in Labri House, a glass home next to a pond that is immersed in lush planting.
The photography is by Hoang Le.