And in this place there already exists a spirit of calm and a ‘feeling of the infinite’ as one takes in the breathtaking vistas of the granite faced hills. The intentions are to enhance this feeling through a design process that responds to this environment.

At 20trees the processes of the architectural design involved taking the necessary creative time to develop an understanding and appreciation for the environment where the architecture was intended to be sited. The natural topography was a serious consideration regarding an appropriate architectural form to fit into the land. A form that is sympathetic with the environment allowing it to follow the land as a series of cascading terraces acknowledging the original slope of the terrain and maximizing the panoramic views to the surrounding hills.

A clear expression of calm and repose runs throughout the architectural vocabulary of the design with the overall composition having platonic rectilinear geometry. It is an interplay of simple solid planar walls and voids as courtyards and window openings. This spirit of calm is consistent with and reinforces the overall feeling of solitude and peacefulness that Melawati is known for. The spirit of place is protected.

The use of planes as a simple expression of abstracted beauty resonates with the grounded nature of the land. The forms are embedded in the slope and the material is simple, without fuss, as is Nature itself. It is only without pretense that these forms, in this material, could exist in harmony with its environment.

A unique interpretation of the traditional courtyard house is developed with the use of a void open space within the layout of the home to facilitate cross ventilation and provide as much natural daylight into the living environment as possible. The use of low pitched concrete roofs are in contrast and are a muted response to the predominant and exuberant profiles of the clay tile pitched roofs that are too visually demanding and typically overused.

Simple things like the concept of ‘floor-to-ceiling’ glass panels, although not new, are distinctly different here where a railing provides a sense that one is on a balcony, offering an open dialogue that extends the living spaces and brings the environment into the home. This is architecture that breathes in the environment and is rhythm and in tune with Nature, facilitating all the senses and enriching the residents with a feeling of being at home and at peace.

Similarly, when the resident arrives at the clubhouse there is a noticeable difference. Here the environment is seamlessly woven into the architecture allowing a reversal of roles where Nature can now breathe architecture allowing it to be the dictator of space, function and form! A 50-metre pool extends to an ‘End of the World’ jacuzzi that further reinforces the long vista, the extended views to the granite hills, and the feeling of the infinite – something without end. Many of the 20trees, 20 environments and 20 experiences are around, on top of and within this clubhouse reinforcing the importance of our collective effort of ‘putting back’ into the environment that which we took away.