Courtyard Villa in Tangshan, China by ARCHSTUDIO

Traditional Chinese courtyard dwellings ‘Siheyuan’ inspired ARCHSTUDIO for Courtyard Villa, a suburban site in Tangshan, China surrounded by verdant farmland, orchards and rivers. The pre-existing timber house was demolished, with the new 265sqm structure encompassing a holiday house and grain-processing factory.

The traditional Siheyuan structure encompasses inward-facing buildings with closed-off exterior facades arranged around a completely open central courtyard, offering little privacy for residents. ARCHSTUDIO borrowed from this concept, scattering four rooms around a central roofed hall representative of a courtyard. Tall ceilings open up the space, and full-height glass facades open onto outdoor terraces, enhancing a sense of connection with the surrounding garden scenery.

The gabled roof and wall to wall timber interior kind of resembles a school camp recreational hall, but in a cool way. All communal activities including dining and even piano sessions take place here, with offshoot rooms containing a kitchen, study and storage space. Each of the four bedrooms are independently set on separate corners that define the perimeter of the house. Together they support the pitched roof of the main living space. A small open yard features in all four bedrooms, bringing in natural light and again reinforcing a connection with the surrounding farmland.

Aligned with the rustic characteristics of the rural landscape, ARCHSTUDIO focused on enhancing the properties of simple materials. Each bedroom comprises a steel framework, concrete ceiling and timber panels. Beige shale bricks construct all walls, sturdy with two vertical layers of brick and thermal insulation in between. The exposed brick aesthetic is identical on both exterior and interior facades, creating a cohesive visual flow. In the bedroom inner ‘yards’, perforated brick walls allow natural ventilation and further penetration of sunlight.

The predominant pitched roof over the central hall is clad with charred timber tiles and ribbed timber beams. The combination of the timber and brick creates a warm ambience, enhanced by lights placed strategically along the framework of the roof.

See more projects by ARCHSTUDIO on Yellowtrace here.