Credits
From Zakiah Zakariah
Denai House was designed by Razin Architects in 2007 on an 8,000 ft2 site in Kempas, Johor Bahru. The house, completed in 2008, is organised in a linear plane perpendicular to the main access road. It has been featured in multiple publications, among the latest ones are in Razin Architects' monograph namely Blurring Boundaries and in Robert Powell's Tropical Malaysian House Vol.2. In 2016, it has received a Silver Award for The Edge My Dream Home Award in the Detached/Semi-detached category.
The basic plan of the house is one room wide, to promote natural cross ventilation for all spaces, as well as ensuring every room has a view to the lawn and the 3m x 15m lap pool. Denai House was designed strictly based on the practical everyday requirements and are a modern take on the traditional Malay Kampong house. Elements like serambi [living area] - a space for greeting guests who are not family members and anjung [entrance lobby] are embedded into the design to relive the spirit of Malay houses.
Floor-to-ceiling folding timber doors in rich mahogany enclosed the family area creating a semi ‘boundless’ room. Once opened, a spacious combined area of 6m x 8m is created, merging together the dry kitchen, family area, dining and lounge area into one without any dividing partitions.
Meanwhile, the application of floor-to-ceiling aluminium framed glass sliding doors replaced typical windows for upper floor bedrooms. These floor-to-ceiling windows replicate fenestration found in traditional Malay houses [jendela or tingkap labuh]. When it is fully opened, it gives out a maximum semi-outdoor experience as well as providing a view and surveillance of the lap pool. Sliding and pivoted timber slats assist with privacy while allowing fresh air to enter as these windows unveiled.
The majority of the off-form concrete ceiling was left unplastered and unpainted. The external colour palette was purposely limited to the use of black paint for metalwork, natural stain for timber and unpainted grey cement plaster for wall surfaces, to create a simple aesthetic.