Celebrating Navovado, our design-build vacation house in the Goan countryside through a gallery of photographs of the courtyard house. Earlier this year, Navovado won the prestigious Platinum Certification from the Indian Green Building Council. Navovado harvests all of its roof rainwater and recharges the water well on site. The use of low-flow water fixtures further improves water efficiency. Focus on use of insulation on the roof, double-glazed glass, low­energy use appliances, LED lighting and 100% hot water from Solar power makes this home extremely energy efficient. The structure is constructed using locally manufactured materials and materials with a high recycled content such as Laterite stone, Matti wood, Fly-ash brick and Slag cement. The garden is planted using native local species to reduce water use for ir­rigation. Finally, large openings allow for maximum daylighting and cross-ventilation, reducing the energy use for lighting and cooling.

The heart of the home lies in the large central courtyard that is an extension of the kitchen, living and dining space. The courtyard houses the swimming pool and provides a green private space to be enjoyed by all the residents of the house. The courtyard morphs in its use depending on the time of day and occasion. The guest bedrooms on the ground floor are designed as pavilions on either side of the courtyard, while the first-floor bedrooms have a large terrace overlooking the courtyard that connects the two levels.

Find Navovado featured in detail on our Instagram page here.

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

Photo in center: Entrance to the courtyard at Raas Hotel in Jodhpur framing the Mehrangad Fort 

This year happens to be the longest time I have spent in India in the last 10 years. So for our year-end travels, we decided to stay within the Indian Subcontinent. When we travel, we like to linger at a few locations, trying to get to know the place, uncover its many layers, pretend to be local and do things the way locals do.... we find this to be more invigorating and revealing than trying to just check boxes of places visited...

In any case, coming back to the reason for this post, after sorting through a list that included Sri Lanka, Burma and Lakshwadeep, we have decided to travel through Rajasthan at the end of the year. The plan is to start from Jaipur (only place with a direct flight from Goa), then travel to Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Udaipur. Now, since I enjoy being in control (read 'freak'..), I am well on my way with the research and planning for the trip. Apart from the forts, palaces, markets, and museums, I am also very keen to discover the newer contemporary luxury hotel architecture that has cropped up in Rajasthan in the recent past. One that has caught my eye and my imagination is the magnificent Raas Hotel in Jodhpur. Seriously, I can't get enough of this one...Other highlights of course are the Devi Ratn hotel in Jaipur and Rasa tents also a Devi resort in Jaipur.

Facade of the new main building wrapped with a sandstone screen

Rass hotel is spread over a relatively small 1.5 acres. It is built into a complex with three heritage buildings that have been carefully restored. But the real beauty of the place is that 3 new buildings have been added to the complex and this has been done with such finesse that if one looks at the photos, it is hard to see where old ends and the new begins. The planning of the new complex is a great example of adaptive reuse. The new buildings are carefully sited and sized such that they become a part of the historic buildings and landscape. See plan and photo below.

Existing Site Plan with three original heritage buildings

New Site Plan for the Raas Hotel with new buildings added to the heritage compound

Photos of the Raas hotel courtyard, where it is difficult to identify the new buildings as they blend perfectly into the historic landscape

In order to blend the old with the new, the designers have used local red sandstone as the dominant exterior material. And that is fine... as the real naunce in design lies in how the designers have managed to use local material, blend it with the old but do all that using a very neat contemporary design language.

Detail of openable screens in sandstone

The building exteriors are wrapped in red sandstone that is used as a contemporary screen. The top of the building that sticks out of the screen in the main block is kept white to keep it from stealing attention but is still not devoid of character due to its understated modern geometry.

Main new building with sandstone screen and modern geometric form 

Inside the screens, they create dramatic patterns with light that changes during the day

Play of light inside the screens

The interiors follow the same wonderfully articulated blend of old and new. I also feel that lighting has been very cleverly designed to highlight the drama in the spaces.

Love this room and the juxtaposition of the old historic with contemporary furniture and lighting

Bathrooms are separated by thick sandstone slabs, bringing historic element to the otherwise modern space

Traditional seating area with contemporary interiors

Nothing looks better than flowing white curtains !! Notice the modern Bertoia chairs in the historic courtyard

Lovely historic courtyard dotted with contemporary furniture and lighting. Also, love the floors..

Designers used mirrors to reflect the surrounding vistas 

Use of mirrors while they distort the landscape adding drama while being whimsical and arty

Here is keeping my fingers crossed so we can get reservations at the Raas !

Designed by Lotus Praxis Initiative.

Watch architect Ambrish Arora's presentation on the design for Raas

.

Link to

Raas Hotel Website

.

Raas Hotel won the award for Best Holiday Building at the

World Architecture Festival 2011

.

Most photos courtesy

www.designboom.com 

I recently stumbled upon this gorgeous rural retreat in Sikkim and thought I should share. The retreat is spread over 4000 sq.m. of land area and utilizes traditional building techniques while following a very modern design aesthetic. I really enjoyed these. Designed by Mancini Enterprises, photos courtesy

Contemporist.com

We are elated to present to you pre-final photos of Nivim Goa from last month.

CLICK ON LINK for fullscreen photos.

Be sure to click on the 'fullscreen' icon on bottom right. 

Shot in April, these photos show the house just before the final finishing stage. We began construction on the house end of January 2011. The core principles of the house is to promote architectural excellence and environmental sustainability.

We are now about 2-3 months away from finishing. We are aiming for the 'Gold' level green homes certification from the Indian Green Building Council and will be the first home in Goa to be certified. Read more on the green initiatives at Nivim Goa.

As for architectural excellence, we have attempted to create spaces that are inspiring, use natural materials and design building openings that all together enhance the user's relationship with the environment. Read about our design concept.

The photos above give the feel for the raw architectural space and materials, and show the bare building that is not hiding behind any fancy finishes or landscaping.... Do see the pictures and we will let you be the judge of how far we have succeeded in achieving our goals.

See all the design and construction updates for Nivim Goa.

All photos courtesy Sanjeet Wahi, Photographer, Delhi.

I recently came across the term 'Barefoot Luxury' in the

Conde Nast Traveller

magazine. The magazine used it to describe one of the three hotels in their listing of most romantic hotels in Goa.

I was intrigued by the term 'Barefoot Luxury'. At first glance, it could be so appropriately used to describe the design themes and concepts employed by us in the NIVIM house in Goa. But before giving in to liberally using the term to describe our house, I ran some basic internet search. The search resulted in a handful of gorgeous resorts in exotic locations of Seychelles, Australia, Kenya, Morocco, Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, Indonesia and Grenada.

A

website for 'the word lover's guide to new words'

describes Barefoot Luxury as 'comfort and elegance in a relaxed setting'.

Time magazine had an article on Barefoot Luxury in Indonesia

. They described the concept as 'an upmarket restatement of the backpackers beach holiday, stressing simplicity and raw nature'. The article went onto describe a beautiful Indonesian hotel on

Nikoi Island

, where the beach houses are designed using natural driftwood, feature open bathrooms, and with no provision for air-conditioning and televisions. The idea is to return to basics and enjoy the luxury of being reconnected with nature. So far so good...

Other properties used the term to describe luxury that is sustainable and that understands and employs local resources (materials for construction, local worforce for training and employment). Luxury that is elegant yet understated.

Well as it happens, most of the above considerations are in sync with our philosophy behind the house NIVIM Goa. Our core design concept is reconnecting with nature and building in a manner that respects and celebrates our truly glorious and unspoiled surroundings in Goa. Our design is intended to extend comfort and luxury while being true to the land. We want to enhance the relationship of the building with nature and reduce the impact of the building on the surrounding landscape. So I guess the term Barefoot Luxury does aptly apply to us after all !

Closer to home, we just spent a great weekend at the

Wildernest resort in Chorla Ghats in Goa

. I would say it is another great example of Barefoot Luxury.

Picture window view from the valley-view cottage at Wildernest, Goa

The pictures below describe more than I can in words...but here are the subtle items that the pictures miss. Wildernest is built and managed in a way that it utlizes local building materials sourced such that it has the least impact on new resources. Built primarily in wood, the visionary behind Wildernest decided not to cut any new forest for their wood. As a compromise, they have used mostly Acacia wood (from the Australian Acacia variety that is actually an invasive specie in India and does not support biodiversity in the area where they grow). In addition, they sourced all their Acacia from social forests. The second type of wood used is reclaimed wood from old Indian Railway sleepers that the government has been replacing with concrete sleepers. Most paving, no actually all paving outdoors in pervious and hence does not stop the natural flow of water back into the earth. Minimum number of trees were cut during construction and the result is an eco-resort that is neselled within the forest. At most times, it is difficult to see any built structure. Spread over 450 acres, the constructed portion is concentrated in a limited area to reduce the impact of (even their most careful and minimal) construction in the virgin forests.

The deck in the cottage overlooking the forest

Wildernest is the vision of a man, Capt. Nitin Dhond who decided to rally and protect these 450 acres of forest land from being encroched by the surrounding iron ore mines, and resulting loss of agriculture, local livelihood and biodiversity. The hotel is now managed in the most sustainable, friendly and efficient manner. The staff hails from the local villages. They are superbly trained to make the guest feel at home, and often surprise them by pointing out birds, animals and medicial plant species. They offer filtered water in the rooms to reduce the need and use of plastic bottled water. The lovely bathrooms are stocked with herbal powders to be used as soap and shampoo to reduce use and discharge of chemicals. The food served uses mostly local produce and recipes.

During our short stay we saw a Malabar Pied Hornbill, a Brahminy Skink and a Green Vine Snake. We relaxed in the peace and quiet green environs and trekked to a beautiful waterfall. It was Barefoot Luxury at its best and we were left wanting more...

Earthy bathroom with its own picture window overlooking the forest and valley

Dining area at sunset

Deck areas at sunset

I am writing this post as an addendum to the previous post on 'dreaming up a life lived outdoors'. The following are a collection of rooms that have been an inspiration in the design of indoor-outdoor spaces in our house in Goa. 

The first picture is of the famous 'loo with a view' at the Neemrana Fort Palace. Some 15 years back, I had interned with an architect on a design job at the Neemrana Fort Palace. Along with the gorgeousness of the palace hotel, the super attention to every detail in design, construction and finishes, the 'loo with the view' left a deep impression on my mind. It represents the fun in architecture and represents the luxury of living away from the swarming crowds and making everyday moments grander, exciting, liberating and inspiring. 

Another space that has been a recent inspiration is

Leti 360

, a beautiful hotel nestled in the Himalayas. The hotel is designed by one of my favorite contemporary Indian architect

Bijoy Jain

. I love the way he has succeeded in using local materials in a very contemporary design and blurring the boundaries between indoors and outdoors.

Two images below are from the

'house on the ridge'

near Pune designed by Opolis Architects. This is a truly inspiring space. Notice the size and proportions of the interior space and how it flows into the outdoors through a completely movable wall. Also, note the windows in the top that keep the space filled with light making it look big and airy.

Then there is the following house in Denmark that was recently

featured in NYTimes

. I can't get enough of the uncluttered large spaces with clean lines, minimal furniture and color. There is nothing to distract you from the most important aesthetic of bringing the outdoors into the indoors. Notice the use of textured stone in the bathroom where one would walk bare feet, a little detail that will probably go unnoticed but adds so much to the experience of living in the house.

These last set of pictures are from a heavenly resort called

Verana in Mexico

. They have a bunch of houses. The design for all of them prioritizes reconnecting with nature above all else. My favorite is the

Tea house

. See pictures below.

Then there is the

V-House at Verana

that totally out of this world.