The 4.5×20 House located in Hanoi, Vietnam, was completed in 2012 by AHL architects associates. This home was designed for a young family with children and features the typical design in Vietnam: lost of natural light and ventilation and simple space with a core and two bedrooms.
Its design was based on the requirement of the owners who wanted a garage for two cars, a kitchen on the first floor, a bedroom and a living room on the second floor, the master bedrooms on the third floor, a guest room and a sky terrace and worship on the fourth floor.
An atrium located in the middle of the house that connects the four levels vertically, allows the daylight to enter in the lobbies and all the rooms.
Photos by Anh Duc Le
Narrow Vietnamese homes often prioritize vertical light over horizontal space. This atrium design cleverly solves the darkness problem, proving that even constrained footprints can breathe with thoughtful, vertical planning.
Thank you! We designed the atrium specifically to maximize natural light in that compact Vietnamese footprint. It’s wonderful to see the vertical planning resonate with your observations on balancing space and brightness.