TINY ELI
project: Tiny Eli
location: Houston, Texas, USA
area: 3817 sq.ft.
year: 2023
Situated in Houston, USA, the building project entails the construction of a residential complex comprising two spacious apartments and a micro-apartment atop, along with several communal areas. The design concept is meticulously crafted around the plot's shape, orientation, and the diverse spatial requirements necessitated by the project. Despite the challenge of a limited plot area, mandating a compact arrangement to accommodate the desired apartment spaces, the initial cubic form lacked finesse. To overcome this, we opted for a more fluid architectural expression to seamlessly integrate the structure within its surroundings.
FACADE
The ground floor, minimized in area, is tactfully set back from the street to accommodate four parking spaces. Larger apartments occupy the first and second levels, while the smaller unit and a communal area, featuring a spacious roof terrace, crown the top floor.
The client's preference for an evolving form, perceptible from varying viewpoints, led to the incorporation of fluidity into the design, accentuated by vertical brise-soleils and towering windows. With the plot's orientation toward a single street, utmost attention was devoted to enhancing the street-facing facade, notably highlighting the prominent western corner visible from multiple angles. By extending slats from the facade to the ground level at this juncture, we emphasized verticality while imbuing the building with a heightened sense of elegance. The design is further animated by recessed terraces that gracefully retreat into the facades.
Employing a wooden framing structural system, commonplace in the USA, facilitated the realization of diverse architectural forms while ensuring structural integrity. The apartment layout reflects the unique characteristics of the project location, offering a harmonious blend of functionality, aesthetic appeal, and spatial efficiency.
