Set within a tight urban plot, the Lantern House is conceived as a meditative exploration of light, volume, and spatial density. With limited frontage and little opportunity for outward expansion, the design turns inward, drawing daylight from the sides and sculpting it from above. Light becomes an architectural material—shaping movement, animating surfaces, and creating shifting atmospheres throughout the day.
Vertical voids, skylights, and carefully placed light wells channel illumination deep into the home, transforming constraints into moments of spatial richness.
At the heart of the design, a pair of suspended cubes defines the architectural narrative. One cube is translucent, glowing softly like a floating lantern that diffuses light into surrounding spaces. The other is opaque, offering mass, privacy, and grounding—a counterpoint that anchors the spatial composition. These suspended volumes create a dynamic interplay between transparency and solidity, openness and enclosure, weight and lightness.
Strategic apertures frame sky and glimpses of the outdoors, while interior volumes expand vertically to compensate for horizontal constraints. Materiality is kept minimal, allowing daylight to take precedence and surfaces to register its subtle shifts.
Together, these strategies create a residence that embraces its compact footprint while offering a luminous interior world—one shaped by restraint, crafted through section, and enriched by the choreography of light. It stands as a quiet retreat within the city, where spatial clarity and sensory warmth arise from the thoughtful sculpting of form and luminosity.