Architecture firm K.A Studio has designed the remodel of an apartment building in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, that included the addition of green space.
In an area filled with concrete and hard lines, this updated apartment building, which is now used for staycations, has been designed as an oasis in the city, with the curved balconies creating a soft edge on the facade.
Overhanging plants cascade down the side of the building, while taller plants add different layers and grow up between the voids created by the balconies.
The underside of the balconies is lined with wood, adding to the natural look of the building.
At night, uplighting creates shadows on the balconies above.
The balconies overlook a pool that’s located on the ground floor and has curves that mimic the exterior of the building.
Throughout the building materials like woods, local split stones, concrete, terrazzo, and rattan are featured.
Bright hallways with lighting embedded in the concrete floors, and in the ceiling, guide guests to their private apartments.
The apartments are minimal in their design, with simple wood furniture in the living room, and a kitchenette.
In the bedroom, a horizontal wood accent above the bed hides LED Lighting, which also complements the lighting on the opposite wall. There’s also a floating wood desk that lines the wall, and a sliding door opens to a balcony.
Photograph: Hiroyuki Oki | Architects: K.A Studio | Lead Architects: Doan Quoc Khanh | Design team: Dang Anh Khoa, Hoang Anh Dung, Tran Quoc Nhat, Le Duc Duy | Construction: La Maison Du K
Architecture firm K.A Studio has designed the remodel of an apartment building in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, that included the addition of green space.
In an area filled with concrete and hard lines, this updated apartment building, which is now used for staycations, has been designed as an oasis in the city, with the curved balconies creating a soft edge on the facade.
Overhanging plants cascade down the side of the building, while taller plants add different layers and grow up between the voids created by the balconies.
The underside of the balconies is lined with wood, adding to the natural look of the building.
At night, uplighting creates shadows on the balconies above.
The balconies overlook a pool that’s located on the ground floor and has curves that mimic the exterior of the building.
Throughout the building materials like woods, local split stones, concrete, terrazzo, and rattan are featured.
Bright hallways with lighting embedded in the concrete floors, and in the ceiling, guide guests to their private apartments.
The apartments are minimal in their design, with simple wood furniture in the living room, and a kitchenette.
In the bedroom, a horizontal wood accent above the bed hides LED Lighting, which also complements the lighting on the opposite wall. There’s also a floating wood desk that lines the wall, and a sliding door opens to a balcony.
Photograph: Hiroyuki Oki | Architects: K.A Studio | Lead Architects: Doan Quoc Khanh | Design team: Dang Anh Khoa, Hoang Anh Dung, Tran Quoc Nhat, Le Duc Duy | Construction: La Maison Du K
From a plant-enclosed terrace in Mexico to a large rooftop garden set beneath a metal pergola in Tokyo, Dezeen’s latest lookbook highlights eight interiors with impressive balconies and terraces.
Each of these balconies and terraces is accessed via glazed walls or floor-to-ceiling glass and provides their homes with not only a physical but also a visual extension of the interior that merges the in- and outdoors.
This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring cave-like interiors, gallery interiors, and garden swimming pools.
Photo is by Alex Shoots Buildings
Terrace With a House by the Lake, Poland, by UGO
This summer holiday home was created by Poznań architecture studio UGO and is located near a lake in Wielkopolska, Poland.
From the home’s main living area, a large 120-metre-long wooden terrace is accessed via expanses of floor-to-ceiling glass sliding doors and double-height glazed walls. The studio described the terrace as an additional room for the home.
Find out more about Terrace With a House by the Lake ›
Photo is by César Béjar
House in Xalap, Mexico, by Lopez Gonzalez
House in Xalap is a 528-square-metre residence that was built on a slight slope. The exterior of the home was rendered in cement which was painted black to mimic the look of a rock formation.
From a dining area, which was clad in black marble and wooden panels, maroon-framed glass doors lead out to a volcanic stone-tiled patio that is walled by lush and tropical planting and geometric sculptures.
Find out more about House in Xalap ›
Photo is by Masao Nishikawa
Espirit House, Japan, Apollo Architects & Associates
A large roof terrace tops Espirit House in Tokyo, which was designed by Apollo Architects & Associates. The terrace is covered by a metal pergola that transforms the open-air space into an additional room of the home.
The terrace is accessed on the third floor of the home from behind a fully glazed wall. A sectional sofa, dining table and large planters filled with local shrubbery decorate the terrace.
Find out more about Espirit House ›
Photo is by Niveditaa Gupta
Villa KD45, India, by Studio Symbiosis
This concrete home in Dehli was designed by Studio Symbiosis for a large family of eight. As a result of thinly framed floor-to-ceiling windows and the home’s exterior concrete floors carrying through to the interior, the boundaries of the indoors and outdoors are blurred.
Studio Symbiosis also nestled small terraces between both of the home’s floors. Decorative seating provides residents with relaxing outdoor areas that are shaded from the Indian sun.
Find out more about Villa KD45 ›
Photo is by Dapple Photography
Rescobie Pavilion, Scotland, by Kris Grant Architect
A cantilevered balcony wraps around the exterior of the two-storey Rescobie Pavilion in rural Scotland. The structure was created as a free-standing extension of a nearby home so that its residents could immerse themselves in the landscape.
The structure was topped with a mono-pitched roof that orients the interior to the landscape, and is enveloped in expanses of glass that provide the pavilion with unobstructed panoramic views of the hamlet.
Find out more about Rescobie Pavilion ›
Photo is by Rory Gardiner
835 High Street, Australia, by Carr
At 835 High Street, a residential apartment block in Melbourne, Australian architecture studio Carr looked to play with feelings of openness within the interior.
It added large wrap-around floor-to-ceiling windows that lead out to covered balconies, which aim to complement and juxtapose the relationship between the interior and exterior. The interiors feature a paired-back scheme and were decorated with designer furniture, including a Mario Bellini Camaleonda sofa.
Find out more about 835 High Street ›
Photo is by Pedro Vannucchi
Moenda House, Brazil, by Felipe Rodrigues
This split-level home in southeastern Brazil was designed by Brazilian architect Felipe Rodrigues and has undisrupted views of the Mantiqueria mountains.
The ground floor of the home contains shared living spaces, which have an open-plan design. The open-plan kitchen, living and dining room are surrounded by a cantilevered wrap-around balcony that is covered in grey tiles similar to those used throughout the interior.
Find out more about Moenda House ›
Photo is by Jonathan Leijonhufvud
Ying’nFlo, Hong Kong, by Linehouse
An angular balcony protrudes from the interior of the Ying’nFlo guesthouse in Wan Chai, Hong Kong. The guesthouse was designed by Chinese interior design studio Linehouse, which looked to create the feeling of an inviting home.
One of the rooms at the guesthouse features a neutral palette and incorporates hand-rendered walls, timber panelling and linen cabinetry. From here, glass sliding doors lead out to a beige tiled balcony that was fitted with a built-in bench and an olive tree at its centre.
Find out more about Ying’nFlo ›
This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring cave-like interiors, gallery interiors, and garden swimming pools.
Architecture firm K.A Studio has designed the remodel of an apartment building in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, that included the addition of green space.
In an area filled with concrete and hard lines, this updated apartment building, which is now used for staycations, has been designed as an oasis in the city, with the curved balconies creating a soft edge on the facade.
Overhanging plants cascade down the side of the building, while taller plants add different layers and grow up between the voids created by the balconies.
The underside of the balconies is lined with wood, adding to the natural look of the building.
At night, uplighting creates shadows on the balconies above.
The balconies overlook a pool that’s located on the ground floor and has curves that mimic the exterior of the building.
Throughout the building materials like woods, local split stones, concrete, terrazzo, and rattan are featured.
Bright hallways with lighting embedded in the concrete floors, and in the ceiling, guide guests to their private apartments.
The apartments are minimal in their design, with simple wood furniture in the living room, and a kitchenette.
In the bedroom, a horizontal wood accent above the bed hides LED Lighting, which also complements the lighting on the opposite wall. There’s also a floating wood desk that lines the wall, and a sliding door opens to a balcony.
Photograph: Hiroyuki Oki | Architects: K.A Studio | Lead Architects: Doan Quoc Khanh | Design team: Dang Anh Khoa, Hoang Anh Dung, Tran Quoc Nhat, Le Duc Duy | Construction: La Maison Du K
Dutch studio Olaf Gipser Architects has worked with housing cooperative BSH20A to create an apartment block in the Netherlands that aims to provide residents with a “communal, sustainable and healthy urban living” environment.
Named Stories, the 47-metre-high tower contains 29 apartments and communal living spaces that overlook the harbour at the former industrial district Buiksloterham.
Stories is an apartment block created by Olaf Gipser Architects
Stories, which also features a community cafe and a terrace topped by an urban farm, is shortlisted in the housing project category of the Dezeen Awards 2022.
Olaf Gipser Architects worked with the BSH20A housing cooperative to ensure a “grassroots, democratic decision-making process” for the project, and to develop a design that is intended to be both socially and environmentally sustainable.
The exterior is wrapped in a steel frame
While Stories’ podium and core are made from concrete, the majority of the tower is built from cross-laminated timber (CLT).
The timber superstructure is wrapped in an external frame of white steel, which forms deep balconies and terraces.
The steel frame provides balconies for residents
Planters, some large enough to support trees, are placed across the exterior with the aim of encouraging greater biodiversity to the post-industrial site while also creating privacy screens for the apartments.
“Characteristic to the appearance of the building is its white, industrial-looking facade, conceived as a microclimate zone which grants extensive outdoor spaces in the form of balconies and winter gardens to all dwelling units,” said Olaf Gipser Architects.
“Integrated in the deep facade is also a communal roof for urban farming that is connected to the shared, multifunctional indoor space,” it continued.
Within Stories’ podium is a garage and six commercial units that create a new street frontage along the harbour’s edge. One of these units is currently occupied by a storytelling cafe offering a “social-cultural programme” for residents.
Planters feature on the balconies
The apartments themselves vary in layout and in size, ranging from between 43 to 182 square metres. However, they all share access to a communal kitchen, gym and sauna.
According to the studio, the apartments follow “open building” principles, meaning changes in their future use can be easily made. For example, there are rooms with dedicated entrances that can function as home offices or be rented out separately.
The apartments have wooden floors and white walls
Olaf Gipser Architects has finished the Stories apartments with wooden floors and ceilings and white walls to create open, airy spaces.
The larger apartments benefit from wrap-around balconies that allow external access from every room through glass sliding doors.
The tower overlooks the harbour at Buiksloterham
Alongside Stories, the shortlist for the housing project category in the Dezeen Awards 2022 includes a cluster of four apartments in Mexico by Void Studio and a self-funded apartment building in Melbourne by Austin Maynard Architects.
A cork-clad co-housing scheme in Belgium by OFFICEU also features on the list and was revealed on Monday as the category’s public vote winner.
Architecture firm K.A Studio has designed the remodel of an apartment building in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, that included the addition of green space.
In an area filled with concrete and hard lines, this updated apartment building, which is now used for staycations, has been designed as an oasis in the city, with the curved balconies creating a soft edge on the facade.
Overhanging plants cascade down the side of the building, while taller plants add different layers and grow up between the voids created by the balconies.
The underside of the balconies is lined with wood, adding to the natural look of the building.
At night, uplighting creates shadows on the balconies above.
The balconies overlook a pool that’s located on the ground floor and has curves that mimic the exterior of the building.
Throughout the building materials like woods, local split stones, concrete, terrazzo, and rattan are featured.
Bright hallways with lighting embedded in the concrete floors, and in the ceiling, guide guests to their private apartments.
The apartments are minimal in their design, with simple wood furniture in the living room, and a kitchenette.
In the bedroom, a horizontal wood accent above the bed hides LED Lighting, which also complements the lighting on the opposite wall. There’s also a floating wood desk that lines the wall, and a sliding door opens to a balcony.
Photograph: Hiroyuki Oki | Architects: K.A Studio | Lead Architects: Doan Quoc Khanh | Design team: Dang Anh Khoa, Hoang Anh Dung, Tran Quoc Nhat, Le Duc Duy | Construction: La Maison Du K
Architecture firm K.A Studio has designed the remodel of an apartment building in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, that included the addition of green space.
In an area filled with concrete and hard lines, this updated apartment building, which is now used for staycations, has been designed as an oasis in the city, with the curved balconies creating a soft edge on the facade.
Overhanging plants cascade down the side of the building, while taller plants add different layers and grow up between the voids created by the balconies.
The underside of the balconies is lined with wood, adding to the natural look of the building.
At night, uplighting creates shadows on the balconies above.
The balconies overlook a pool that’s located on the ground floor and has curves that mimic the exterior of the building.
Throughout the building materials like woods, local split stones, concrete, terrazzo, and rattan are featured.
Bright hallways with lighting embedded in the concrete floors, and in the ceiling, guide guests to their private apartments.
The apartments are minimal in their design, with simple wood furniture in the living room, and a kitchenette.
In the bedroom, a horizontal wood accent above the bed hides LED Lighting, which also complements the lighting on the opposite wall. There’s also a floating wood desk that lines the wall, and a sliding door opens to a balcony.
Photograph: Hiroyuki Oki | Architects: K.A Studio | Lead Architects: Doan Quoc Khanh | Design team: Dang Anh Khoa, Hoang Anh Dung, Tran Quoc Nhat, Le Duc Duy | Construction: La Maison Du K
