Camera Frame House

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The Studio was approached by real estate startup Alveāre in early 2020 to design for them a residential building in one of their land inventories along the Sta. Rosa - Tagaytay growth corridor in the Philippines. The aim is to build the house and release it to the upper-middle-income real estate market once completed. Alveāre tends to break away from the themed and cookie-cutter designs that are quite common in the gated communities in the area. Emphasis was given on the need for a house with a modern Asian contemporary design that will sit well with the current times and beyond.

The site where the house is to be built is within The Sonoma , a community situated in the beating heart of Sta. Rosa, Laguna. It sits adjacent to two international golf courses and is a short drive away from two of Sta. Rosa's largest shopping malls. The Sonoma is within the immediate vicinity of Evozone, Nuvali's upcoming central business district. These make the project well placed in a very desirable site. While the village in which the project is located has a strict set of rules in its design guidelines, the designer has managed to be within its limits while at the same time complying with the owner’s requirements.

The design brief calls for a 4BR house with 2 common baths, an en-suite bath for the master bedroom, a garage for two vehicles, and an outdoor seating area at the back for afternoon teas. The architect responded to these requirements by adopting an open plan approach on the ground floor wherein the living room, dining, and kitchen flows through one clean space. This arrangement allows an abundant amount of sunlight to filter collectively through these spaces. A bedroom designed to accommodate the occupants in their later years in life is located on the ground floor. A common bath and a maid's room are adjacent to quickly attend to their needs. A rear patio sufficient in size to accommodate common wicker seats and a two-car garage completes the ground floor. The master bedroom with its en suite bath is placed on the second floor to take advantage of the views of the surrounding areas. While designed with privacy in mind, it has physical access to the front and rear sides of the property through its timber-decked balconies. Two other bedrooms with a common bath are hosted on the same floor along with the seating room that has visual access to the living room below through an atrium.

The building envelope utilizes white concrete walls, grey accents, glass panels, and timber elements to convey a straightforward, uncluttered design and void of unnecessary ornamentation. Careful placement of firewalls, provisions of brise soleils, and canopies were all considered to counter the heat gain from the afternoon sun. Clerestory windows were also provided to allow as much natural light as possible to the upper floor.

Since the project is driven by the property market economy, the construction of the Camera Frame House is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2021 or once the pandemic is contained in the country. It will be marketed by Alveāre under the name “Nuria”.

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Project name: Camera Frame House
Location: The Sonoma Country Club, Sta. Rosa, Laguna, Philippines
Architect: Michael Gracilla, UAP, LEED AP | ARKMIKEL Design Architects
Developer: ALVEĀRE Lifestyle Properties
Features: Residential, G+1, 4BR, 2-car garage
Architectural style: Southeast Asian Contemporary
Scope of work: Design & Build (TBA)
Lot size: 180 sq.m. (1937.5 sq.ft.)
Total built-up area (BUA): 194.42 sq.m. (2092.72 sq.ft.)
Project status: Design completed, 2020, Build TBC

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1 The Sonoma is a master development project by Empire East Land Holdings, Inc. To get a feel and have an overview of The Sonoma community, please click here.

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