From Arch Daily writer Victoria King: "Even in Ho Chi Minh, a chaotic and highly density city, a 3 m wide and 9 m deep plot in a narrow street is still considered as a thorny problem for renovating an old house to a more comfortable and functional space.
"Designed by a21 studio, its vertical louvers give distinction but not strangeness to its exterior in comparison with its neighbours. The ground floor seems to be larger and tidier because of the combination of living room, dinner, and kitchen without any partitions to define the spaces. The familiar materials such as bricks and steels are used flexibly to add raw feeling to these man-made spaces.
"Moreover, nature is delivered into the house by the introduction of a tree right at the entrance. The connection between bedroom and bathroom is collection of sparse wooden pieces, which cause flows of light, wind, rain and even human intentions among the house. This is also the place where the tree meets its need for sunlight." Full post with images here. (Photo credit: Hiroyuki Oki.)