Plain Ties House in Surat, India by Matharoo Associates

Photo: Dinesh Mehta.

Photo: Edmund Sumner.

Photo: Dinesh Mehta.

I can’t help but think of India’s ancient astronomical observatories when looking at Plain Ties – the curve of the concrete staircase hugging the curved, moveable walls as it reaches up towards the stars, the robust geometries coming together to a central point.

Located in Surat, India, Plain Ties – designed by Matharoo Associates – is a home that uses concrete quite poetically, while sculpting and layering the façade to allow it to resemble a cubic masterpiece. Founder Gurjit Singh Matharoo and principal architect Komal Matharoo’s ambition for this multi-generational home as a place to celebrate the tradition of joint-living – an age-old tradition that is becoming increasingly less common.

The dwelling can be found within a community formed by a cluster of tall residential buildings with a looming presence in the north and west. Within the subtly gated community resides a garden in the south – thus began a mission for the architects to design a house that would offer privacy from their tall neighbours while able to appreciate the scenic views of the south.

Photo: Dinesh Mehta.

Photo: Edmund Sumner.

Approximately at 848 square metres and standing three storeys high, the house aims to accommodate not only the family but grandparents as well. The site itself, made of unstable black earth soil allowed the architects to use a deep foundation that would serve as a space. Such decision evolved into a basement that holds meditative areas for relaxation, praying and exercise.

Above, the architects experimented with free-standing concrete walls to partition off spaces for kitchen, living and dining on the ground and three spacious bedrooms on the first floor without the need for doors to close off the spaces. Interconnected between the ground and first floor a living with a circular skylight puncturing the two levels and can be enclosed as an intimate gathering space by impressive rotating cylindrical concrete doors. The level of openness with a circular statement inspires a form of family-orientated observatory moment – just imagine, family members gathered to admire the night…

Photo: Dinesh Mehta.

Photo: Edmund Sumner.

Photo: Matharoo Associates.

Photo: Edmund Sumner.

Photo: Dinesh Mehta.

Plain Ties was named for the simple connections and relationships that hold the house together. Throughout the interior is framed by tactility and raw finishing of the concrete, and the rough texture greatly complements its surrounding site context. There’s the manipulation of the concrete’s surface to imitate aged wood grains seen in timber weather sheathes and decking. Certain partitions allow the edges of the concrete slab edges to jut out to create an illusion of a woven pattern, lias though the house was stitched with fabric. Hand laid terrazzo shines brilliantly while light from the Southern public garden enlarges the space. Keeping the interior décor minimal, retro seventies orange and mustard furniture highlight key places in each space.

With careful and strategic planning of each space, Plain Ties allows family members to be individuals while still interconnected to each other through materiality and visual connection. Added the minimalist interior, this house aims to surprise visitors with its airy interior by technically challenging the potentials of the favoured brutalist material.