▲ View of the bungalow from the hill top to the north-east with Big Wave Bay in the background.

BUNGALOW WITH A VIEW

- AND COOL

NLY too rarely does the archi-

tect in Hong Kong have the pleasure (modified though it may be if client-architect relations suffer from close and continued proximity) of designing a house for an indivi dual rather than facing the possibly repetitive impersonal task of creating a block of flats for impersonal oc- cupants.

Earlier this year one such house was completed on the half-acre site (21.780 square feet to be exact) of RBL 809 Big Wave Bay Road. Shek 0, for Mr. K.A. Watson by Eric Cumine (architect in charge A. A. Lee).

The result is a home that takes full advantage of all that Hong

80

Architect: Eric Cumine (A. A. Lee in charge)

Kong's climate and scenery have to offer a householder and an architect who are not bound by the ideal of obtaining the maximum financial return from the smallest ground area but who combine thoughts and energy to produce a place to live in instead of a transient shelter from the elements.

The house is set on the side of a hill sloping east and north east and has a roofed over area, including garage and verandah. of 5.600 square feet. all on one floor. Very little cutting and levelling had to be done on the site and there was a natural plateau at 105 feet above sea level on which the bungalow could be placed to take full advantage of a

fairly level approach from Big Wave Bay Road, of the sea view to the north-east, and of the prevailing winds.

Basically the design in simple and based on two guiding principles: the bungalow as a whole takes the form of a V with arrow head of the V pointing out to sea, giving wide sea views from all parts; the sleep- ing. living, and service portions of the bungalow are all separate from one another yet allow for easy in- tercommunication without distur-

bance

The living area is the shaft and point of the V. It includes a large verandah (1,000 square feet) facing directly on to the sea. Behind this

THE HONG KONG & FAR EAST BUILDER-VOLUME 18, NUMBER 3

Page 85Page 86

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