A private residence located in a quiet setting of Delhi's Sultanpur area contorts linear geometry to inject it with movement. The House Around the Oblique Column by New Delhi-based architecture and interior design firm Renesa Architects offers a form that both anchors and unsettles; a solitary slanted column impales its core, introducing a slight shift in perception. Inhabiting an acre of land, the 12,000-square-foot house is designed for a family of three, including an artist and curator. The residential architecture flaunts a muted palette, raw textures and deliberate geometry, composing a space as much for living as for pausing. “The house is inspired by the idea of ‘habitable art’—where architecture is not just a container for living but an evolving canvas for artistic expression,” Sanchit Arora, principal architect, Renesa Architects, tells STIR. “The home is envisioned as an exhibition space in itself, allowing art, light and architecture to interact seamlessly,” he adds.

Helmed by father-son duo Sanjay and Sanchit Arora, Renesa breathes life into spaces that embrace both functionality and artistic expression. The multidisciplinary practice places contextual sensitivity, sculptural forms and an elemental material palette at the core of its creations; the very values that define the House Around the Oblique Column. Renesa frequently blends tactile warmth with minimalist brutalism in its oeuvre, turning routine experiences into sensory encounters. This project is a culmination of the firm's recurring design language that pivots itself on pure geometry, raw materials and a lyrical architectural narrative.

A close dialogue between the studio and the client and a deep understanding of their backgrounds became the reference points for the project. The client’s background in art was central to the brief that called for a structure that transcends domesticity. The house is envisioned to shapeshift as a living art gallery that can harbour, display and respond to creative work. The Indian architects, hence, refrained from compartmentalising functions and instead conceived a flowing sequence of experiences framed by walls and corridors. The oblique column emerges as an intentional disturbance that plays with the spatial complexity and choreographs the movement, views and alignments throughout the plan. “It [the oblique column] serves as a monumental anchor, visually unifying the spaces while challenging traditional notions of vertical support,” Arora explains. “Rather than being a passive structural element, it becomes an artistic statement, symbolising movement and dynamism within the built form,” he adds.

The house interweaves contrast and clarity to function spatially. The entrance gently unfolds to provide framed views that change as one manoeuvres through the building. Public spaces are ample and peaceful, with volumes that softly compress or extend upward to steer use and mood. Massing and placement aid in insulating the more private areas, such as the art studio, bedrooms, sit-out space and gym, while preserving visual connections to common areas. Material changes, portals and shifting lighting accentuate transitions, with each layer calibrated to provide rhythm in the concrete architecture. The home carefully balances order and variation at every scale, between the oblique's lyrical deviation and the grid's rationalism.

Abiding by the semantics of subtle brutalism, the residence features a material palette that relies on exposed concrete as a primary element, reinforcing a raw, sculptural presence throughout the home. The monolithic language is equalised by the warmth of materials such as sandstone, Kota stone and travertine, all sourced locally to augment textural layers and depth. Expansive glass panels bridge the indoor and exterior areas, enabling the building to engage with the surrounding environment, while metal accents and wooden infills lend a sense of refinement. “The material palette is a refined take on brutalism,” the architect notes, adding that “the approach was to work with materials in their natural, unpolished state, allowing their inherent textures to define the home’s character."

A tapestry shaped by geometry and natural light, the House Around the Oblique Column resides at the crossroads of architecture and art. A brutalist restraint collides with artistic fluidity as Renesa imagines a singular archetype defying traditional residential design. Every surface encourages interaction while a sense of movement is dictated by geometrical precision. At the core, the home's oblique column, in addition to being a sculptural gesture, alludes to disruption, intention and creative momentum. Defined by moments of stillness, discovery and inspiration, the house, in the architect’s words, “feels monumental yet intimate, raw yet refined—a perfect balance between function, form and artistic expression.”

Project Details

Name: House Around the Oblique Column
Location: New Delhi, India
Client: Surita Tandon
Built-up area: 10,000 square feet
Design Team: Renesa Architecture Design Interiors
Lighting: White Lighting Solutions
Year of completion: 2024