Spiritual Casa

The four-story house is a quiet home in the countryside of Yilan, Taiwan, owned by a Spanish and Taiwanese couple. The overall spatial structure and intricate details pay homage to Chinese and Spanish traditions, based on a deep affection for the native land. The triangular roof, Spanish tiles, screen and Chinese totem are arranged to integrate Eastern and Western cultures, and expand the inclusiveness of the space with the original natural tone, attempting to trigger memories through material texture, touch and color, and connect the feelings of people and hometown.

In order to show the characteristics of Chinese and Western cultures at the same time, the architectural structure is integrated into the common triangular wooden beams and ceiling in Spain, the island bar is added, and the wall is decorated with Spanish tiles to build the life scenery of Spain, while the Chinese screen, flowering crabapple and antique coin totem invisibly interpret the traditional Asian customs. Cooperating with local artisans, the hand-woven rattan furniture is customized, using traditional mortise and tenon structure for composition, to show the local exquisite craftsmanship. It also adopts the non-decorated gray tone as the overall space base, because the neutral natural primary color is highly inclusive, to accommodate a large number of eastern and western elements without conflict.

In terms of layout, the living space adopts mobile furniture to keep the flexibility of space adjustment and maintain the sense of openness. As for the private area, the arch and curved partition wall are included, the double-entry design creates the buffer zone between the master bedroom and the bathroom, and increases the storage space, while the round arch shape also is the metaphor to the completeness meaning of the East.

The study on the top floor is the owner's secret house, including Chinese tables, chests of drawers, posters and paintings collected over the years. The Chinese totem screen is arranged above the stair handrail to maintain the home safety. An L-shaped book wall is set along the wall, and the curved design makes maximum use of the corner space for convenient display of collections.