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A House with a Glass Ceiling: House 3098 by HEAD Architecture

01.23.13 | By
A House with a Glass Ceiling: House 3098 by HEAD Architecture

Located on Hong Kong’s Lantau Island in Tung Chung, House 3098 (Village House) follows the guidelines set forth by the government on allowable height, footprint, and construction methods. HEAD Architecture and Design set about to design a socially responsible structure that was also flexible and modular, that could work for any other village house.

From the architect:

When the Hong Kong’s New Territories Exempted House Policy was introduced in 1972, it was intended to improve the standard of housing in rural areas of the New Territories.

Under the policy, every indigenous villager is entitled to apply to build a small house on private land, or on government land at a concessionary premium, within their ancestral village.

As long as they follow certain criteria, they may build as per the statement above.

Privacy and views have taken a hit in the villages because of poor architectural planning by some. In order to combat these problems for this house, they created an inward view with the open central space in the house. It also makes for a relaxed feel and helps the home feel more private.

All of the internal spaces are connected by the triple height space of the dining area.


The view looking down

Most traditional houses in the area are dark on the lower floors due to a lack of natural light, but this space benefits from lots of windows and the 8-square meter glass skylight above.

Minimal artificial light is needed because of the large windows built into the structure.


Looking up

Love the photo above of the men crouching on the glass ceiling pretending to hold up the suspended fixture.


The glass ceiling from the rooftop patio

They kept the exterior minimal as to not disrupt the look of the village.

Photos by Graham Uden.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.