M house is a private house that is built on the former front garden of the client’s previous house, where she lived with her mother. There are a number of large existing trees which were planted long ago by the client’s father for the mother, hence the reason for the client’s wish to save them for keepsakes that have resulted in an even smaller buildable area. The architect started designing from the leftover spaces in between the trees, using these “negative spaces” to form the building with the intention of using each existing tree as a view for the different functions of the house. This leads to a unique plan, where the architecture turns and swerves to avoid existing trees and to create a view for each room. The new house is linked to the old house with a terrace which connects on the first floor where the living room, dining area, pantry and powder room are located. The second floor comprises the master bedroom, guest bedroom and the home office, all of which are connected to the central stairs foyer to minimize the circulation area. Each of the functions are inserted in the corners in between the trees, while the space is left to be double volume in the main living area to create a visual connection between the first and second floor.

Another main requirement from the client is for the house to be private and concealed from the outside, thus the architect decided to keep the old car park’s entrance structure to help block the view from the main road and to opt for the building’s height to be at the same level with the existing trees to hide the entire house behind the tree canopies. Since the buildable space is quite limited, the swimming pool is placed on the rooftop, creating an open space for leisure that is surrounded by the treetops. The rooftop pool also has full sun exposure all-day which prevents the water from becoming too cold when in use, while subsequently, the volume of water also acts as a thermal barrier that cools the temperature of the bedrooms on the second floor.

From the exterior, the facade appears to compose of vertical angled planes that are assembled to keep the privacy and hide the actual house from the passersby. The openings are placed in certain areas to highlight the view of each existing tree to different functions. The top edges of the vertical planes protrude above the roof slab and doubled as railings for the rooftop terrace. The planes are finished with white color textured paint with patterned groove lines to create a distinctive appearance, meanwhile, the white tone is contrasted with the wood tone of the interior, resulting in a warm and cozy atmosphere in the interior spaces.

In summary, M House is a compact house hidden amongst the trees, yet it is able to possess quality spaces with views to surrounding greenery, sizable terraces and a swimming pool despite its limited buildable area.