© Ben Lepley
Set in a palm plantation on the west coast of India only a stone’s throw from the Arabian Sea, this beach house provides a refuge from the hectic metropolis of Mumbai. The house consists of two elongated cubic structures in timber, laid out to preserve as many of the existing palm trees as possible. The dense vegetation also prevented the use of heavy equipment, so that all phases of the work were executed by hand by local craftsmen – from the excavations to the roof structure. Materials were taken mainly from the region, and traditional forms of construction were applied, modified as required to meet design needs.