Open courtyard for Lucknow residence
Gurugram-based 42 MM Architecture has designed the Aashirwad Residence in Lucknow, a residence spread over 21,000 sq. ft. The four-storeyed structure comprises the drawing room, dining space, kitchen, three living rooms on each floor, a pantry on each floor, eight bedrooms and two study areas. Additional spaces include attached washrooms and dresser, home theatre, spa, Jacuzzi, terraces with swimming pool and courtyards on each floor. Also, the basement has a banquet designed as an art gallery. The client is an affluent nuclear family, which brings together the spatial interaction and lifestyle.
A single concrete portal strings together the wooden elements on the façade, which is further accentuated by long strips of light. A sloping garden leads to the sunken courtyard with water bodies and green walls, which lead you indoor. A driveway is built for their large car at the corner of the plot, which lends an L-shaped cuboidal shape to the built mass. The first floor is defined by large terraces on the northeast and south, which is repeated on the second floor.
Natural light and ventilation are ensured by strategically-placed punctures in the volumes, along with courtyards and atriums at different levels. Following an exo-skeleton grid, it provided shade and visual privacy to the spaces using Vaastu Shastra principles. The courtyard is a glass prism that brings in natural light, while the atrium links the two floors. The former unifies all the floors through the external stairs, down to the ground-floor living room. The external staircase moves down to the basement through the sunken courtyard. The northern opening is brought down to the basement through a flight of stairs, which brings in natural light.
As per Vaastu Shastra, the master bedrooms are placed in the southwest. Louvers cut the extreme heat in this location, which also promote visual privacy to the main terraces with the Jacuzzi and swimming pool. A vertical planter and a horizontal shading device further guard against neighbouring tall buildings, and contribute towards the aesthetic sensibility. Exposed concrete, leather, untreated wood, stone and metal are used for the material palette. The door, panels, stone and false ceilings are made in a factory, but transported and installed on-site.
