STEEL x ED CALMA

Steel captures the modern design language — clean, simple and timeless. It is stylish yet sober, showing tasteful restraint that has become signature Ed Calma.

The genius of this house is in the engineering, utilizing commercially-available sizes of steel frames to minimize costs and optimize opportunity. The grid layout provides maximum customization both in and out. Options for floor to ceiling glass open possibilities for panoramic compositions of gardens outside, a visual luxury compared to the portholes given to most city dwellers.

LARIO X DOMINIC GALICIA

Dominic Galicia is best known for his churches and museums. With Lario, he creates a sanctuary for the family, one that is a secure and comfortable place to live.

Lario’s brick wall opens up to a generous open plan living room, dining room and kitchen. Its high ceilings lend a reverential feeling to the home. Upstairs, there is family room and three bedrooms with their own baths.

The striking feature of Lario is its double wall design. It manages air, heat and light as economically as possible and does it in a beautiful way. The brick-gapped wall filters the scorching sun and wind, while the space between the brick wall and the inner wall of sliding panels acts as a breezeway, cooling the air before it enters the house. This design feature also captures light and throws a theatrical play of light and shadow in a variety of ways, treating its occupants to poetry and stimulation throughout the day.

ALDO x TINA PERIQUET

A truly tropical city house, Aldo has been designed with the Philippine climate in mind.

Tucked under a tall pitched canopy, the house huddles safe from the elements, perched atop a raised deck that keeps flood waters away. The two layers of roof provide effective armor from sun and rain, while allowing breezes to flow through the space between, naturally insulating the space below. The sheltered structure within the shed offers flexible interior spaces that can be easily adapted to the needs of a growing family, or to create a work-live-play environment, within a harmonious setting of gracious proportions.

Activity areas are oriented toward the rear garden, away from street view and prying eyes. Above the upper floor, a walled roofdeck offers a shady outdoor space for use as a gym, playroom, hobby space or picnic area, and can easily convert to a full upper floor.

VEIL x JORGE YULO

The star of the show is a steel veil originating from the roof. While this may sound cold and intimidating, the steel elements of the veil were designed to slightly corrode and then sealed to produce a warm, reddish patina. This key feature protects the house from the harsh tropical sun, while lending a luxurious and dramatic appearance.

Inside, Jorge Yulo relies on a limited palette of materials, mainly concrete, wood and steel. Materials are sealed for protection, but left unadorned to emphasize the form and structure of the house.

Jorge Yulo is a sculptor - and this house is a piece of art - but it is practical and durable. Like his treatment of steel, concrete is a material that gets better over the course of time, developing more character as life goes on in the home. This is a house that wants to be experienced and will uniquely reflect the passage of time in it.

O x JOEY YUPANGCO

The O is a response to the scarcity of urban space and the movement towards low domesticity.

This stylish concrete, steel and glass home consists of three stories of 64 square metres, each with an almost 360 degree view (practically views with rooms). The house allows for freedom inside where furniture defines adaptable spaces and the floor-to-ceiling glass (approximately 40% operable) dissolves the boundaries to the exterior. Its form allows it to remain oriented to the north, while the various options for the brise soleil provide protection from the sun.

The O is not just a statement, it also demonstrates that small can be luxurious.