Articles by Hana Abdel

Located in Tabanan, Bali, Indonesia, Gua Gua Villa is a villa complex consisting of one unit of 1 bedroom villa and 2 units of 2 bedroom villa. Optimizing the site, the villas are set on linear setup leaving only 6 meters face for 1 bedroom villa and 4 meters face for 2 bedroom villas. Dynamic circulation was created to break the long space. The villas were inspired by Mediterranean Architecture elements which are easily identified through the rough texture on the wall and arch shapes on the curved roof, windows, doors, and other architectural details. The natural plastered texture on the wall and floor is in contrast with the white paint ceiling and perfect arch geometry. Intentionally creating an impression of being in a cave, fixed furniture was designed ‘heavy’ with concrete and stone in an organic shape.

Dickies, an iconic American workwear brand, has opened its first flagship store in Korea, located in Seongsu, Seoul. This project was launched by Musinsa, aiming to shift Dickies’ image in Korea while preserving its core values. The site was formerly a leather goods store housed in a 40-year-old building. The aged exterior, with its weathered red bricks, was retained to reflect the historical context of Seongsu, an area known for its industrial past.

The Ridge house is a jewel located in the dense urban fabric of Rajajinagar, Bengaluru. It’s a bijou, sitting on a plot of 2400 sqft, shining brightly due to the two striking volumes of the built form adorned with simple yet folksy jaali bricks.

This is a renovation of a room in an apartment complex built half a century ago. The seven-story building faces Katahira-cho Street in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, which was a feudal lord’s alley in the feudal era. The building is situated on a cliff with a difference in elevation where a river terrace directly meets the river, and offers a view of the unique landscape of Sendai formed by the Hirose River and Mount Aoba.

The SITH Villa is a residence designed for a family of four, located near Vellore on the bustling Chennai-Bengaluru national highway. Surrounded by expansive agricultural landscapes, this residence is a perfect blend of serenity and innovative design. The villa not only integrates with its natural surroundings but also redefines sustainable living in a modern context. The home’s site extends linearly, a characteristic that presented unique design challenges. However, this linearity also offered an opportunity to create a series of interconnected spaces that enhance the living experience. Our design strategy was to break this linearity by introducing open spaces between different built structures. These spaces serve as transitional zones that blur the boundaries between the indoors and outdoors. They foster a range of leisure activities, from quiet reading corners to areas for vibrant social interactions, all while being bathed in natural light and cooled by breezes passing through brick lattice walls. The spaces are thoughtfully arranged in a hierarchy, ensuring privacy where needed, and openness where it enhances the user experience.

The site is located at the boundary where residential areas meet natural green spaces in Daera-ri, Gijang-eup, Busan. Although quite distant from the center of Busan, it benefits from its strategic position within Gijang County, offering easy access to the Busan urban area. Consequently, many factories and warehouses have historically coexisted with residential neighborhoods here. However, with the opening of Gijang Station on the Donghae Nambu Line, public transportation has improved, enhancing the livability of the area. This, along with rising land prices, has led to the demolition of many factories and warehouses, making way for multi-family and multi-unit housing and accompanying neighborhood facilities. Considering this urban context, we aimed to design a small-scale building that fosters a residential-friendly atmosphere, replacing the industrial structures.

The Zambezi River House overlooks Africa’s mightiest river, which flows into the Indian Ocean; at the same time, it forms the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Two different national parks surround the Zambezi Fish Farm, whose central building is the project – the smaller Mosi-oa-Tunya, which means “thundering smoke” in the local language and whose end is the Victoria Falls, and the much larger Zambezi National Park on the Zimbabwean side. When the sky is clear, you can see the “thundering smoke” of the falls from the roof terrace of the house, which stir up so much water vapor that they can be seen like a single cloud on the horizon.