An adventurous design
O Architect Fabian Tan has created a simple yet bold structure which he calls the BewBoc house
FABIAN TAN inspires us to think out of the box. The young architect recently transformed a cube space of a suburban corner lot terrace house in Kuala Lumpur, and the sheer size of the building is jaw-dropping and will stop you in your tracks.
“I like to exaggerate the scale of the size to almost to the size of spiritual buildings,” revealed Fabian.
Tan, who owns Fabian Tan Architect, even daringly made a uniquely curved concrete arch structure.
He captures the ‘essence’ of space in his design, now known as BewBox House, while meeting the request of the house owners to build a concrete structure which defies all our beliefs about what a house should look like.
The new structure causes the house to stand out from its neighbours. Tan’s approach was to re-imagine a form befitting a corner house and to re-purpose the living spaces on the ground level.
He had a unique vision to transform a part of the house into an annex, pavilion, or as an addition to the main house, which is built on 3,700 sq ft on 5,800 sq ft of land.
A simple beauty
Tan, who obtained a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of South Australia in 1997, has worked in KL and Melbourne and handled a wide range of development for residential, institutional, commercial and interior projects for 11 years.
He first noticed the cube shape space in the original layout of the house.
“I imagined the pavilion perpendicular to the skewed boundary. So, I created a triangular space (in between) and separated the pavilion from the main house and added windows to allow the flow of air and light,” said Tan.
Inside the pavilion, there are two spaces; a study room and a balcony on different levels. The rooms are built on delineated spaces in sort of a platform instead of constructing a full-fledged floor.
“The levels I have created have a certain hierarchy to the space. It defined the space below, the living room and dining room and it has some vantage points,” said Tan.
“The different levels gives a different kind of viewing experience for the client. It is quite interesting.”
Awe-inspiring arches
The most spectacular part of the building is undoubtedly the huge open space balcony with an arch, which extends outward, creating a vaulted annex that forms the living spaces.
Tan redefines the structure of traditional balconies and created a fascinating space where one can sit on the edge for a stunning panoramic view of the residential area and natural surroundings.
The private balcony is accessible from the master bedroom through a small staircase, which is located
at the side of the main house.
Inspired by nature
What was fascinating about the house is that Tan drew inspiration for the building from a cave.
During a trip to Gunung Mulu in Sarawak, the architect was impressed with the natural structure, where it was hard to differentiate where the
wall, floor, or ceilings started or ended.
“Subconsciously, perhaps that led to the design. When I went into Mulu Cave, the size and the way the floor, wall, and ceiling seems, almost combined into one,” said Tan.
“l thought the idea is very interesting and this led me to create the shape of the arch and to create a simple form, a very monolithic or continuous space of concrete ceiling, wall, and floor.”
On the front, two large pine timber panel doors open up to the garden. The particular timber was specifically picked as it is much lighter compared to other types of timber.
“The timber is black and when the sun shines it shows the grains and the particular characteristic of the timber,” he said.
Intriguing interior
Inside, the bare concrete walls in the modern structure are a complete contrast to the white main house.
Another special feature is the innovative window shape, which Tan described as a ‘smiley’ emoji window, at the side of the concrete vault.
“There is a very strong reason for this,” he revealed. He envisioned a monolithic style architecture, created from one single material or a large piece of rock, for the interior.
The upright arch on the top extends to the interior part of the structure and this gives a feeling of continuity, as the arch and walls below appear as though they are an elongated space (from the front to the back) through an optical illusion.
“The arch (inside) extends the space even longer than it is and that is the intention of it. The inverted arch window (at the side) complements the upright arch, at the entrance,” explained Tan.
Creating adventurous design meant facing a lot of challenges.
Tan had to ensure every calculation was done correctly, and balanced to achieve the desired results, especially regarding the precision in the execution of the design and construction.
“There were a lot of things I had to calculate. People seem to think that a simple design is easy to execute. Actually, it’s more difficult. A simple and beautiful house is not easy to execute,” revealed Tan.