Hanoi house 'elevates' functional space to catch the sun

By Minh Trang May 13, 2021 | 02:15 am PT

Turning convention on its head, a ‘dike’ house in Hanoi features a top-floor living space, suited to grabbing the best available city views, light.

The 234-meter-square house, located at the foot of the Day river dike, opens a 40-degree view to the main road on the dike slope. With the facade of the house facing the west, homeowners want to have a view to watch the sunset. The owners of the house are two young families with three generations hoping to live in a house with open spaces, trees and wind. The house has four main blocks and four floors. The blocks create voids surrounded by ventilated materials, bringing the sun and wind into the building. The building with the foundation lower than the road surface elevation (2.5 - 4 meter), so architects push the entire functional space to the 2nd and 3rd floors. The first floor is used as common spaces, including a garage and gardens.

The 234-meter-square house, located at the foot of the Day river dike, offers a 40-degree view to the main road. Its West-facing facade offers optimal natural lighting.
The owners comprise two young families of three generations seeking a home with many open spaces, trees and wind. The house has four main blocks and four floors, creating voids surrounded by ventilated materials, luring both sun and air into the building.
The building foundation is lower than the road surface elevation (2.5 - 4 meters), with architects designing the entire functional space across the 2nd and 3rd floors. The first floor is used as a common space, including a garage and gardens.

To ensure privacy and avoid dust, architects design a high fence like the base of the house, using raw red brick materials and techniques that creates an airy space to ventilate and get natural light for the entire first-floor space.

To ensure privacy and avoid dust, architects designed a high fence, using raw red brick and techniques that create an airy space and attract natural light.

Greenery is located in many parts of the building.

Greenery inundated many parts of the building.

Architects recreate features of northern plain houses with a modern twist. The house has a porch, a front yard, a backyard, water surface, green trees, which are all close to houses in northern Vietnamese villages.

Architects recreated features of northern plain houses with a modern twist. The house has a porch, a front yard, a backyard, water surface, green trees, similar to homes in northern Vietnamese villages.