A series of circular voids and "halo" skylights create spaces for trees to grow through this home in Semarang, Indonesia, which has been completed by local studio Tamara Wibowo Architects. Named Halo House, the dwelling comprises two gabled, barn-like forms clad in charred wood flanking a central strip of internal and external spaces that sit beneath a flat concrete roof. The residence comprises two gabled structures and a central strip A series of circular cut-outs define this central roof. Above the external spaces, large voids open to the elements have been created, forming a canopy for th ..read more

Local practice Slow has created a family home in Nagoya, Japan, which has a raw exterior of blackened wood and corten steel topped with an overhanging pitched roof. Occupying a slightly raised corner plot bordered by roads, Slow gave the home, named Yamaguchicho House, an almost windowless exterior for privacy, making use of skylights to illuminate its "healing", sanctuary-like interiors. The home's exterior is clad with charred cedar wood Fronted by a sloping garden that wraps around the building to create external paths, the entrance to Yamaguchicho House is set within a box ..read more

Local studio Oliver Leech Architects has extended a Victorian terrace house in south London, introducing a four-metre-wide skylight at its centre that offers views of a wildflower meadow roof. Located in the Poet's Corner conservation area of Herne Hill, the studio was tasked with retaining the late 19th-century building's character while opening up its "disconnected and dark" interiors. Prioritising natural light, Oliver Leech Architects expanded the ground floor with an open living, dining and kitchen space, which meets the existing building with a large skylight and a window seat overlooki ..read more

Funnel-shaped concrete skylights illuminate a plant-filled courtyard at the centre of this home in Bangalore, India, which has been designed by local studio A Threshold to "blur boundaries between the inside and outside". Named Ineffable Light, the four-storey family home is located on a tight urban plot with neighbouring buildings on three sides, which required the careful balancing of natural light and privacy. In response, A Threshold opened-up the eastern facade of the home with glazed openings and stepped balconies and created a large skylit void at its centre, both of which are shaded b ..read more

Chilean architecture studio Stanaćev Granados has created a seaside house with a concrete and wood-clad exterior and a cargo net in the floor in Chorrillos, Chile. Known as the Primeriza House, the 2,750-square foot (256-square metre) residence was completed in 2020 in a small clearing in a cypress-filled hill that slopes steeply down to the Pacific Ocean. Stanaćev Granados perched Primeriza House on a cypress-filled Chilean hill Stanaćev Granados, a Santiago-based studio run by Nataša Stanaćev and Manu Granados, designed the home to make the most of outdoor living while creating multiple int ..read more

Gridded fibre-cement cladding and a swimming pool with underwater windows feature at the East Van Residence in Vancouver by Canadian firm SMStudio. The project is in Hastings-Sunrise, a residential neighbourhood in East Vancouver, a mixed residential and industrial area that borders the city's harbour. SMStudio designed the concrete-clad home to replace a "tired, 1950s bungalow" The home replaces a "tired, 1950s bungalow" that did not accommodate the client's needs, said SMStudio, a local firm led by Simon Montgomery. "This house was designed for a small family that loved their neighbourhood ..read more

Shingle-like panels made of weathering steel clad the pyramidal forms at the River Bend Residence, a project designed by Texan studio Lake Flato Architects to "sit lightly upon the land". Located in a region known as Texas Hill Country, the house is in the city of New Braunfels, just north of San Antonio. The area is known for its German heritage, cultural activities and two rivers. River Bend Residence overlooks the Guadalupe River Respecting the natural setting was a guiding concern for the design team, as the home sits on a wooded perch overlooking the Guadalupe River. "River Bend Residenc ..read more

London firm Studio Varey Architects has simplified this Victorian terraced house to create a light-filled home in Notting Hill, with timber-framed skylights designed to catch the sun. Set in the Westbourne Conservation Area, Huron House has belonged to its current owners for the last 25 years. Huron House is a renovated Victorian terrace in west London The overhaul of the 19th-century building started as a simple ground-floor renovation to replace the kitchen and improve the connection between the house and its garden. However, exploratory works showed the four-storey property to be in bad st ..read more

Mexico City-based architect Ludwig Godefroy has cut circular openings into the slanted ceilings of a series of dwellings in Puerto Escondido, Mexico, to create semi-exposed pools and gardens. Godefroy placed a series of circular openings in a cast-concrete structure to create cave-like interiors that remain open to the tropical climate of the Pacific coast site. Ludwig Godefroy has created four identical houses in Puerto Escondido, Mexico The project includes four identical dwellings divided between two adjacent structures. Puerto Escondido's warm temperatures meant Godefroy could design Casa ..read more

Local architecture studio Romero de la Mora has created an expansive concrete and wood holiday home with a protected courtyard in Tepeji del Río, just outside Mexico City. Casa Camelia was completed in 2021 at the Amanali Country Club and Nautica in Tepeji del Río by Romero de la Mora Architecture and Development. The U-shaped is located just outside of Mexico City The shallow 455-square-metre, U-shaped house was arranged so that all of the recreational areas are along the perimeter and the house can be opened in four cardinal directions to bring in light, air and views of the surrounding gol ..read more