Onebulb Architecture Studio, a practice based in Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, India, dedicates itself to the task of creating eco-sensitive environments and habitats with the usage of low-impact materials and methods. “We consider social responsibility to be an essential component of any project. We emphasise rural enrichment as part of the design process to guarantee that the final product combines the client's ambitions for aesthetics, functionality and budget with the vision of sustainability,” their mission statement mentions. The Indian architecture studio’s overarching ethos of employing sustainable processes is further leveraged by the inspiration they derive from vernacular architecture and from stalwarts who have preached and practised along similar lines.

For one of their most recent projects, Brick Veedu, the Indian architects sought inspiration from Chettinad residences and mansions, whilst embossing the concepts propagated by erstwhile British-Indian architect Laurie Baker in their design. The residence design, hence, emulates the humbleness that is characteristic of Baker’s works, even as it includes the integration of traditional adornments in the two-storey house. Referencing the dominant usage of brick in Baker’s projects and the reflection of this aspect in Onebulb Architecture Studio’s residential architecture, the project is rightly called Brick Veedu, which means Brick House in Tamil.

Brick Veedu, conceptualised by the founders and principal architects of Onebulb Architecture Studio, P Balavenkatesh and R Hemkumar, is located in a residential area in the old settlement area in Madurai. With ample green spaces in the vicinity and most residences in this area embodying a contemporary urban aesthetic, Brick Veedu, with the rawness of its materials visually apparent and with the usage of elements that are reminiscent of traditional architecture in the region, bears an incongruous mien that attracts attention without brazenly breaking the urban character of the neighbourhood.

The private residence, built on a linear site measuring 45 feet by 75 feet, is designed for a young IT practitioner and his nuclear family. “The intent was to give life to the client’s requirements in the form of open volumes that are visually connected - with bricks as their embodiment,” the architecture studio shares. Keeping in mind the extreme climatic conditions in the region, the architects designed the contemporary residence with natural materials that help keep its interiors cool. “The theme of building materials wanting to be their own is earnestly inspired by Laurie Baker - further supplementing the spaces in the form of stones, wood, steel and colourful handmade Athangudi tiles,” the architects share.

Further, the employment of passive cooling techniques, too, helps minimise the need for artificial cooling in Brick Veedu. While traditional Chettinad houses host a central courtyard that is surrounded by cloistered corridors that further lead to private rooms, Onebulb Architecture Studio does away with this space in Brick Veedu. Instead, the house hosts two atriums—in its central portion and above the main living area—with skylights letting diffused light into the space. This not only provides some breathing space to the residence but also visually connects different spaces of the house on both levels. With a ventilation niche between its two-tiered ceiling—one of which is a metal grill and the other, a glass covering—the stack effect, too, is facilitated in this double-height space.

Citing the studio’s vision for this brick architecture project, the press release mentions, “The spaces are also a conscious reflection of the architects’ imagination and ideals, therein constantly striving to break stereotypes that include heavy plasterwork, gilded metal grills for the purpose of security and even the idea of ‘elevation design’. The richness in architectural vocabulary and cultural elements is felt as one explores the elements designed within.”

The entrance to the residence, via its east face, is adorned with a pitched roof, an extended threshold that sits atop the elevated plinth, a carved doorway and a series of windows. The pitched roof, although supported by a metal structure that is topped with clay tiles, is reminiscent of the double-pitched roof found in Chettinad houses, structured to route rainfall either outside the house or towards the central courtyard. The extended threshold, albeit small in size, reminds one of thinnai or the outer covered verandah that surrounds traditional houses in the region and often serves as an informal space for socialising and hosting guests at the brink of the home and the street. The main wooden door, elegantly carved in Burma teak and a stretch of windows on the front facade serve as reinterpretations of entities commonly found in Chettinad households. The Indian designers rightly declare, “A rich and ornate Chettinad door set on an exposed concrete and brick wall framed with landscape on either side imprints a nostalgic entrance on one’s mind.” The windows, on the other hand, are informed by the age-old practice of puncturing facades with ample fenestrations—in hot regions—to welcome the breeze in. These fenestrations pervade most faces of Brick Veedu, facilitating good ventilation.

Moving into the residence, one first reaches the living room, which features a lavish expanse dotted with wooden furniture and a rubble masonry wall with niches for artefacts. This large portion of the household is further connected to the dining area and a sitout zone, which is centrally placed on the plan. To further enhance the scale and volume of the space, customised bricks with a width and height of 2.25 inches were used. High ceilings further enhance the spatiality of the residential interiors. The dining area, with built-in seating, overlooks the garden outside. As mentioned previously, this central zone, dedicated to all forms of socialising, is double-height and hence, vertically connected to the first floor. This allows diffused light to illuminate the central space. A staircase in this zone, supported by its rammed earth foundation, leads up to the floor above, where more spatial opportunities for leisure await. While the staircase, the treads of which are made using stone and wood, leads to a transitory space wide enough to serve as a meditation spot or a lounging space, the setbacks around the atrium offer spanning views to the spaces on the lower floor. The meditation area is topped with a Mexican dome that further enhances the experience of this area. This dome was materially conceived on-site with the help of various students who were invited as part of a special workshop by the architects. The minimal handrails that border the atrium on the first floor overlooking the lower floor, further help enhance the visual connectivity within the house. “As the spaces are planned to look inwards to the central double height area, they exude an innate sense of openness without any compromise in the functionality,” the architects share. Near this area lies a reading space and a home theatre room, too.

The southern edges on the ground floor host two bedrooms for the family and a guest bedroom. These bedrooms, too, host built-in seats where one can sit and enjoy the view of the garden outside. On the first floor, one can find the master bedroom, an elevated reading space and a home theatre positioned along the southern edge. One can surmise that the placement of the bedrooms along the southern face, which receives maximum heat from the sun, is planned keeping in mind the scant usage of these spaces during the day. The master bedroom includes a stepped foyer that alternates as seating overlooking the internal courtyard or atrium. Most bedrooms within the residence feature steps at their entrance, integrated per Vastu guidelines. The prayer room within the residence, too, is positioned near the centre, to comply with Vastu. The different private and semi-private zones and rooms on both floors are separated by level differences. One can trace the presence of steps leading up to the more private and isolated zones and the necessity to step down when one desires to go back to the more public areas.

The semi-private zones within the household, on the other hand, are placed on the northern portion of the house. On the ground floor, this includes, apart from the living spaces, the kitchen and the utility area. On the upper floor, a semi-shaded terrace lies along the entire northern span of the house. This northern facade on the first floor and a portion of the eastern facade are covered with a series of stained glass windows. These windows, with their multi-hued colours that illuminate the interiors in vibrant tones, are redolent of such windows used on the facades and hallways of traditional Chettinad mansions. Known to have come into usage during the late 19th century when the industrial production of glass in India gained pace, these tinted windows are speculated to have been inspired by comparable usages within the Gothic Revival movement. Its usage in Brick Veedu is, hence, not only a reference to the local architecture but it also highlights the richness and innovation that cultural exchanges and architectural amalgamation lead to. The shaded terrace, with its landscaped corners, serves as an ambient space for lounging and socialising.

While the stylistic and elemental features within the house adeptly reference Chettinad architecture, the influence of Baker can be witnessed in the way materials are treated. Whether one examines the ample usage of exposed brickwork in the structure, the integration of filler slabs, the minimal jaali brick pattern on the eastern facade of the terrace or the rubble masonry used for walls, the imprint of Baker on the residence is paramount. His principled approach to keeping materials in their raw state—sans unnecessary adornment or finishing—also finds its way into the textured exposed concrete surfaces of Brick Veedu. The usage of the customised Athangudi tiles and oxide flooring, while a nod to Chettinad heritage, is also a reference to Baker’s perpetual inclination to utilise local craftsmanship and traditional techniques. The usage of different materials, hues and textures, in tandem with each other, helps break monotony while also adding depth to interiors.

“The balance of natural finishes and traditional vibrant elements highlight the warmth of the spaces and the metallic and minimal décor defines the character of the space,” the press release mentions. In utilising elements and materials popular within the traditional heritage in the region and juxtaposing them against contemporarily formulated internal volumes, Onebulb Architecture Studio manages to build a residential building suited to extant needs, albeit with a fair amount of freshness and newness. While the numerous usages of traditional elements such as carved doors, filler slabs and brick walls create a sense of nostalgia, novel additions to the space, in the form of organically shaped mirrors and furniture, stone sink, wooden stair treads and more, enchant the residence with a charm that is sentimental, awe-inducing and apportioned for experimentation and exploration.

Project Details

Name: Brick Veedu
Location: Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
Typology: Residential
Client: Murugesan Magizhvagam
Architecture firm: Onebulb Architecture Studio
Lead architects: P Balavenkatesh, R Hemkumar
Site area: 3300 square feet (306 square metres)
Built-up area: 4500 square feet (418 square metres)
Year of Completion: 2023