A striking wooden house in Goa pioneers mass timber design for India

A new wooden house in Goa by Architecture Discipline lays a claim to being India’s first mass timber home, incorporating a structure formed from glued laminated portal frames and charred wooden cladding panels. The raw timber interiors are offset by black granite flooring as well as a minimal approach to interior design and furnishing that prioritises space and views out across the Arabian Sea.

Step inside this wooden house in Goa

Located in the village of Vagator and commissioned by e-commerce expert Sahil Barua, the architects were given a practically free hand, as long as they complied with the client’s functional requirements. One point of inspiration was the Barua’s childhood, part of which was spent on the Louis Kahn-designed IIM campus in Ahmedabad, giving him ‘an intrinsic appreciation for the authentic expression of materials.’ This led to the focus on timber-based construction.

The sloping site offered far-reaching views to the Arabian Sea and the Chapora River, so it made sense to orientate the structure to make the most of these. Likewise, the gradient of the land was exaggerated by a cantilever, raising the pitched-roof structure off the ground on a series of stilts and concrete retaining walls.

The steep roofs are essential in this monsoon-heavy climate, with the superstructure of the house formed from eleven Glulam frames, which are revealed against the dark stained timber cladding. These were made in New Delhi and assembled on site.

The principal volume is a double-height space, finishing with a glass wall that opens out on a balcony raised above the landscape. A gallery level runs along one side, leading to a private seating area and the principal bedroom at one end and a high-level balcony beneath the pitched roof at the other.

At ground floor level there’s a wood workshop, opening out on a shaded terrace and deck that is also cantilevered above the tropical garden, alongside a rectangular 25-metre lap pool. The other cantilevered form contains the kitchen and dining space, which veer off at an angle from the main structure.

Furnishings are kept sparse and classic, with white walls serving as a backdrop to the owner’s art collection. On the outside, the charred timber panels were made using the traditional Japanese Yakisugi method, a charring process that makes the wood resistant to heat and moisture and gives it a distinct dark form against the rich greens of the surrounding nature.

Much of the garden is given over to edible plants, another passion of the owner. Architecture Discipline was founded in New Delhi by architect Akshat Bhatt in 2007. The studio works across a number of disciplines, from concept design to offices and retail.

ArchitectureDiscipline.com