Narrow House

The Narrow House by Bassam El Okeily Architects.

I wish I could remember the name of that book where the entire neighborhood is of identical houses until one guy decides to paint his house an outrageous color, causing an outrage among the people. Then of course they realize that it's way more important to be an individual and blah blah fun personality, and all paint his or her house a crazy color too...but since I've pretty much said the whole story I guess the reference isn't really that important.....

Ehem..anyway..this house reminds me of that story. I used to dream of living in a super modern house of white walls that incorporated natural materials and scenic views..and I'd say this comes fairly close.

This says a lot about modern architecture and where it's headed..it no longer has to fit into a mold but can be aesthetically pleasing as well as solid and smart in its structure. We can live in a beautiful sculpture, not just a house. Our imaginations can now be translated more than ever.

I believe this also has to do with an overall shift in perceptions I've been noticing especially within my generation. We want to be designers. We love fashion and art. We follow music as our religion. Our constant access to pictures, words, thoughts and feelings via the internet, television, movies and our peers gives us constant inspiration. We enjoy things that we find beautiful, no matter what that means. Our own miniature renaissance hidden away within ourselves that if we could just stop with the bad obsessions could materialize into something truly special and possibly become a reverberating movement. I don't know if I'm right, but I see this potential. I just don't know if it can be realized.

-t

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