Pia Nesensohn from Austria adopted Sri Lanka as her second home and found a 68 perch,densely foliated land opening out to ‘Madu Ganga’ to build her tropical villa. Set on a site sloping towards the river at its rear, this building follows a simple plan with a manipulation of cubic forms, rustic materials and the topography of the verdant green landscape. The building is designed to embrace the natural slope of the land rather than contend against it, by maintaining the existing slope and integrating the design to fit on this natural terrain. Designed to be acclimatised to local tropical climate, the building responds through form, openings and detailing, complemented by the use of natural and localised materials.
