The Precast House located in Howth Village, Co. Dublin and designed by FKL Architects. The house is consists of two levels, the first floor as the primary living spaces and second floor as the sleeping space.
The house situated in a long site, sloping, falling towards cliffs and the sea. Entering site the viewer’s eye is drawn to the horizon, the viewer is pulled towards the abstracted line.
The projects is defined conceptual terms as three discreet forms – garage, house and swimming pool – each emerging from the landscape, their respective heights being determined by the use of each form. The relationship between the three elements is a casual one, slipping past each other, sliding towards the sea.
The three forms detailed in the same manner and use the same material, polished precast concrete. The surface tension across the facades is maintained by the flush detailing of the windows and the glass balustrades. The reflected landscape is visible in both glass and polished precast concrete.
At first floor level (entry level) the plan is open with the primary living spaces and entrance having an overlapping relationship, within the field of the first floor a number of walnut clad timber elements are slipped between floor and ceiling planes, defining the flow of the space and adding richness to the interior.
At ground floor (sleeping level) the situation is more introverted, the figure ground relationship is the reverse of the first floor, the plan is treated as a solid mass that has been carved out to make a cruciform circulation space with the bathrooms and bedrooms retained inside the remaining form.
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