House in Quang Yen

This house, deeply rooted in its family’s history, bridges the past and present through a design that seamlessly integrates the legacy of its old garden with modern functionality. The home, inhabited by a retired doctor-teacher couple, their sister, and children, reflects generations of tradition and provides adaptable spaces for family gatherings.The design takes inspiration from the original garden, which featured a half-moon pond, miniature mountain sculptures, a flower garden created by the grandfather, and a vegetable garden maintained by the grandmother. The new garden incorporates two interlocking half-moon shapes, forming the square footprint of the house at the center of the site. The southern curve transitions into a pond that invites cool breezes, while the northern curve forms a private inner courtyard extending the kitchen and connecting to the vegetable garden. A flower garden and pathway lead from the pond to the house entrance, creating a welcoming atmosphere.At the heart of the house is a circular opening that connects the ground and first floors, creating a vertical spatial axis. The ground floor offers a flexible open space that can adapt to various needs, while the first floor includes a staircase, a communal room, and a worship room that visually extends into the space below. The house grew from the old garden—a continuation of the owners’ way of life passed down through generations. It creates flexible spaces for a large family to gather, while serving the everyday life of its current residents: a retired doctor and teacher couple, living together with their sister and children. At the heart of the ancestral garden was a half-moon pond with a mountain miniature, surrounded by countless bonsai pots, a front flower garden made by the grandfather, and a vegetable garden in the back cultivated by the grandmother. The new garden reinterprets these memories: it is formed by two intersecting half-moon curves, generating a square footprint for the house at their centre. To the south, part of the first half-moon becomes a pond, inviting cool breezes inside. To the north, the second curve extends the kitchen into an inner yard that connects seamlessly to the vegetable garden. A flower garden and a pathway in front of the pond lead to the main entrance. Inside, a circular opening connects the two principal spaces. On the ground floor, a flexible open plan suggests one, two, three, or even four rooms, depending on use. Above, the first floor holds a stair, a common living area, and a worship room. This worship room extends downward through the circular opening, creating a central spatial axis that links the water landscape to the south with the skylight to the north. Around this axis, the bedrooms and supporting spaces are arranged in an L-shaped plan. The wide pond to the south not only creates a striking view but also regulates the microclimate—keeping the house warm in winter and cool in summer. A large tiled roof, layered insulation, and carefully proportioned openings allow the interior to be bright when needed, or shaded and private when desired. Each main space is anchored by a central column, evoking the trees of the ancestral garden, as if the family were still living beneath their branches. The house extends the garden, and the garden extends the house.‍