Yellow Line Apartments
AREA: 100 sqyd.
LOCATION: New Delhi
The brief was to design a 100 sq.yd. Residence for a builder with individual floors to be sold out separately in a peaceful green South Delhi neighbourhood. This 15ft x 60ft north facing corner plot had an advantage of opening up windows and balconies into the side service road as well.
The building’s height was restricted to 15 meters including a Basement, Stilt Parking and a G+3 structure with Terrace. Considering the narrow width of the plot, the zoning and planning of it had to be done very carefully so that every square foot area is utilized efficiently with ample amount of light and ventilation for the end user. The concept started with placing the lift and the staircase at the centre aligned to the service road, so that a bedroom and washroom can be created at the rear and also, allowing enough space for a living + kitchen and a front master bedroom + washroom.
The bedrooms were placed at the front and rear ends to allow natural light and to provide balcony space for both. The planning was also strictly made vastu complaint as is required by most buyers in that location. The kitchen was planned with a half wall opening up to the living room to maximize the feel of the common area.
The concept for the façade was to somehow provide a playful yet minimal look. Since the corner plot was covered end to end on all sides and all the floors were replicated as the same, the outer walls could not have any punctures or variations to it. It could also not have any projections coming out as it would extend outside the plot line. Hence the idea was to use lines and grooves to break the whole mass into different textures and colours to create an interesting composition. Firstly, the floors were separated using thick dark texture painted bands, breaking the volume down. The front corner was opened up to the exteriors using a large corner window and a narrow balcony. To the left of the window, vertical bands were created of all the three colours used in the whole façade (off-white, dark brown and yellow).
