Mirai House: A Contextual House Designed for Arid Climate
Apart from the needs of the occupants, the surrounding environment of the property has a significant influence on the overall design of a family home. Mirai House in Rajasthan, India, for instance, is a contextual house designed according to the hot desert climate of the location. Sanjay Puri Architects designed the residence on a small corner plot of 622 square meters within a residential villa layout.
Given the location, the southern and eastern sides have minimum open space. These sides will have adjacent villas to be built in the future. The northern and western sides facing a road junction have more open spaces with garden areas and existing trees.
Sanja Puri Architects designed the residence for a family with three generations living together. It has three levels with four bedrooms, two living rooms, a gym, and a study. The heights within vary in each section. Each part of the house has an interesting play of volumes, such as bedrooms of a single volume, dining area of a double volume, and a living area of an intermediate 1.5 level volume.
The surrounding of this contextual house features a curvilinear punctuated envelope that creates interstitial semi-open spaces all along the perimeter with deeper recesses on the garden-facing sides. According to the architect, this envelope reduces the heat gain substantially while providing sheltered open spaces around the house to each room.
Since the location has a hot arid climate, the envelope keeps the entire house cool in the hot summer months with temperatures that can go as high as 40 degrees Celsius for eight months of the year. The architect designed this sculptural house to respond to its surroundings, the climate, and the owner’s needs, creating an interesting play of volumes, open enclosed, and semi-open enclosed spaces at every level.
“The design creates energy-efficient spaces with reduced heat gain and indirect natural light in each part of the house. Built with locally sourced bricks, sandstone, and lime plaster with local craftsmen and contract labor from the immediate vicinity, water recycling, rainwater harvesting, and solar panels for energy generation. The house is built sustainably and is climate responsive,” Sanja Puri Architects explained.
Photos from Dinesh Mehta
