Located right in the middle of an urban and crowded locale of Trivandrum, the site was a small plot that was being suffocated by other residential projects from all four sides. The idea of this residence was to have an inward facing house with all its spaces opening into a funneling central courtyard. The Rat trap bond is a brick masonry method of wall construction in which bricks are placed in vertical position instead of conventional horizontal position and thus creating a cavity within the wall that increases thermal efficiency, cuts down on the total volume of bricks used and is ideal for concealing structural members and service ducts. The idea was further developed to form a series of slanting walls that danced left and right, converging only to support the ferrocement shell roof. Each staggered wall has been tailor-made to suit the issue of deficiency in space that this residence posed, aiming to create larger volumes and a feeling of privacy.
Drawings:
