Elsewhere, the joglo’ s white-washed and brown painted soaring roof results in a contemporary-style geometric pattern, while the colour palette of white, brown and green tones forms a delicate backdrop for a few key artworks.
Although many people have built ethnic-style homes in Bali’s rice fields, not many have managed to produce estates with such panache. This one is simultaneously an enduring acknowledgement of Indonesia’s peoples and heritage—and a wonderful family home.
The interior of the antique joglo, a central Javanese structure, acts as the kitchen and dining room. Here the modern and the antique work well together: a country-style teak dining table and old Javanese bench sit comfortably with a contemporary side table housing an antique bird and masks from Java. Above is a soaring carved bird, also from Java; probably about 50 years old, it is a typical “folk art” piece. The side table was designed by Amir, a Sumatran antique dealer and craftsman, from an old block of teak wood. The Matisse-inspired painting follows the general colour scheme of taupe and olive.
The master bedroom is a symphony of red and gold in Chinese Indonesian style. Rouge tones on the floor and walls were selected to match the antique Javanese bed. A variety of Sumatran, Chinese, Thai and Javanese trunks, tables and boxes form the furniture, while decorative items include a gold Burmese Buddha attendant, a lacquered red-and-gold wooden Buddha statue, a betel box (tempat siri), Javanese figurines and a mask from Java. In the corner, above an antique Javanese chair painted white, hangs a Burmese marionette. The overall effect with the soaring timber-and-thatch ceiling is overtly opulent.
A wicked-looking Javanese mask sits between a pair of Javanese figurines, all carved from wood.
Three traditional Balinese masks used in the topeng dance drama flank a mask from Cirebon (second from left); the latter would have been used in the oldest form of West Javanese dance that originated from the north coast.
Called Villa Artis, the main building is a simple, two-storey rectangular villa with an extended, protected verandah at ground level.
Bali has become famous for its open-air bathing options, so this Jacuzzi tub set in a deck of old teak boards from a hotel in Java with attendant lily pond is not such an unusual sight. What sets this one apart, however, is the attention to detail in the décor. On right sits a carved set of doors from Java, decorated with wayang figures; on left is a painting in the style of Matisse. The wooden figures by the tub are a pair of Javanese loro blonyo ; protective figures, they are traditionally placed at the entrance of homes both as guardians and to welcome guests.
Exterior view of the merchant’s house from Aceh. It has a bedroom on the first floor and an open-air living area at ground level. Beautiful carved latticework and restored shutters ensure the upper level is well ventilated, while sturdy eaves protect the ground floor from sun and rain.
The “front” of the main triangular building somewhat resembles a ship’s prow. With a small garden and lily pond around, it is clad in grey paras stone to support the beautiful curved “flying” roof.
following the
lay of the land
Built in 2004 as guest quarters for the home featured on pages 136–147, the form of this two bedroom home is dictated almost entirely by the shape of the land within which it snuggles. Sandwiched on one side by an access road and on another by a steep gorge, the house is almost in-built into the land. “The challenge was to make the house disappear from the driveway while totally integrating it into the tropical scenario,” explains a spokesperson for GM Architects. This is fully realized, as it is only the singular shape of its two roofs that alerts passers-by of its existence.
The brief was for something “cute and different”, and the architects accomplished this mainly through the two curved roofs that resemble the upside-down keel of a boat. The larger one is 22 metres (72 feet) long and both were constructed, pre-assembled at a workshop elsewhere in Bali, then cut into sections and reassembled on site. This was achieved by Tropical Buildings, a company that specializes in building stand-alone structures that can be packed and re-assembled in a different location at a different date.
The house comprises two buildings, a smaller one with a single bedroom and bathroom, and a larger main one, with living/dining quarters and one further bedroom. They are interconnected by a sequence of curved surfaces—walls, pools, decks, paths—that follow the natural contours of the land as it drops dramatically down to the river. These also help to fully integrate the home into the surrounding landscape and vegetation.
Needless to say, it isn’t only the roofs that give this house character and substance. Certainly they offer an internal feeling of protection, as well as excellent natural ventilation, but there are other features of note. The use of materials—wood, natural stone (paras and palimanan)—and furniture crafted from shells, bones and coconut shards gives the house an earthy, organic quality suitable for indoor/outdoor tropical living. Of particular note is the open-plan living and dining areas: Situated over two levels with open access to deck and pool, the entire space is a pleasing mix of curved and perpendicular volumes, hard and soft surfaces, and light and dark shades.
If one were to view the home from an aerial perspective, the two volumes would look a little like two turtles crouching down into the surrounding vegetation. But when one is at ground level, all is airy, light, breezy and natural—and the surrounding trees, grasses, water plants and ornamentals are not merely surroundings. They are part of the entire whole.
Precision cutting, curvy shapes and a natural flair for organics such as coconut, bone and penshell result in some beautifully crafted decorative pieces from the atelier of Etienne de Souza.
The open-plan living room, wrapped by a soaring timber roof propped by a large V-shaped support, leads out to a palimanan stone deck on right and has a raised dining space behind, which opens up to another upper wooden decked terrace outside. A teakwood sculpture by Yasukazu Nishihata for Nakara complements teakwood flooring and a décor theme of organics.
Wood decking, lawn, water and pebblewash and terrazzo are only some of the surfaces used in this entirely natural home.
Elegent detail of a long bench made from Tahiti mother-of-pearl by Etienne De Souza.
The compact upper dining