Tatler gets inside access into the ‘Mushroom House’ designed by the architect Royal Pineda

Architectural design principles and more converge into this house inspired by a mere mushroom

The owners of this breathtaking retreat are a Filipino couple who lived and worked in Singapore for a long time. But now, they felt, it was time to go back home, to find a spot in nature, and say goodbye to the cold comforts of a manmade world. They had already acquired earlier the perfect place: a 1,068sqm forested property high on a ridge, fronting the sea. What can be more paradisal than this?

So, they called an architect who shared their vision and advocated Modern Filipino Living, where design celebrates nature and its elements of sun, wind and sea. Royal Pineda immediately saw his design concept fitting right in; moreover, he saw it expanding to an extra dimension and be called, more appropriately, Modern Filipino Island Living. But the place had more in store for him.

On one of his ocular visits to the property, Pineda spotted mushrooms growing on the trees. “They were beautiful, and I just thought that it would be nice to design something so organic to the place instead of going against the lines of nature,” he said. He loved the lines of the common toadstool (“They were not rigid and angular”) and knew he had found his inspiration. But will his clients agree? “Like what we usually do, we first present the entire inspiration, the foundation of the design,” the architect shared. “What is so great about these clients is that they allowed us to stay creative. They just allowed us to create something that the site deserves.” As such, The Mushroom House was born. However, a critical point that his clients impressed upon Pineda was that this would not just be their beach house or weekend house but their residence.

The house appears relatively modest from the street that ends in a cul de sac. It looks like a compound comprising a two-storey building and a bungalow. “We just wanted to present something like a façade architecture that does not break the view,” Pineda explained, coming to one of several facets of The Mushroom House that highlight a design principle he espouses. “A house should generously share the view. This is very Filipino, that of being mindful of the other, or alumana in Filipino. This is very important to our Filipino architecture,” he stressed.

Upon entering, it becomes apparent there is more to the house to discover, for the terrain is not boringly flat. “The challenge here was managing the elevations and creating a space that flows. We wanted our clients to continue enjoying their house as they age. So, we made sure the risers of the stairs are of a gentle height to allow them to walk, not climb, up and down,” Pineda elaborated. It is a multi-level house but always a half-flight, not a full flight, to the next space. “You could probably count six storeys,” Pineda added. This design feature creates the architect’s desired fluidity and movement so that it can never be described as static.

Another striking feature of the house is the centrepiece: a well-established acacia tree whose age must still be determined. This majestic tree welcomes you from a distance as you enter the house. The entry point is the porch of the main house leading to the living area by a half-flight step. This space is also connected to an outdoor lanai and a balcony stretching the view to the acacia tree and beyond, out to the breathtaking seascape. From this point, the swimming pool below is also visible, a testimony to another Pineda design principle: visual connection. “In our layouts, we always aim for visual connectivity, which is a form of intimacy. So, a house can be visually intimate but spatially apart. For intimacy to happen visually, that’s very important in our layout,” he elaborated.

Another half flight down is the dining and entertainment area. This is already the level of the acacia tree. Also on this level is the entertainment area, kitchen, dining, lanai, and outdoor wood deck. A few steps down from the balcony is the primary bedroom. Pineda’s original proposal was for the primary bedroom to be in the living area above. “However, the owners said they would like it better to have their room connecting to the pool right away,” Pineda cited one of their bespoke requirements, which he was happy to execute. “Ultimately, their idea came out very nice, and it works for them.”

One more half-flight down are three bedrooms wrapping around the TV room. This is already at ground level, which has become a spacious area for the wife to indulge in her passion, gardening. One of the bedrooms also serves as a study room and perhaps an office for the husband, who works remotely as a consultant for several corporations.

The Mushroom House is seen best from a boat out on the water. “From the sea, you can really see the layering of the house, the mushroom caps serving as roofs articulating the movement of the architecture,” Pineda said. The architect employed the filleting technique to achieve a mushroom’s soft edges. “Instead of designing the house in 90-degree angles, we used filleted corners, or basically, curved corners, cancelling sharp edges. Under the cap, we used wood to achieve a warmer tone against the white ceiling. An open sea view can be very harsh, and to manage this is by creating something warmer or dimmer, not bright,” he explained.

He also opted to use stone-coated shingles for the roof, which enabled them to get the curve. “And they are excellent material for seafronts,” Pineda said, coming across another design principle he calls “practical luxury”. “We wanted to make sure the maintenance of the house does not burden the owners. That the house is low maintenance was also in their brief, so I used engineered wood, treated, designed to last outdoors. They only have to oil it,” he added.

Whenever applicable, Pineda used filleting—not just in the roof but in the beams and curved glass. “You see, it is a very welcoming architecture, not harsh at all,” he stressed.

The Mushroom House and its multi-layering architecture could not have pleased Pineda more. “I believe we should always celebrate nature and somehow be able to use it as a foundation to create a new culture,” he returns to the core of his design ethics. “I believe that culture can also be designed as long as it would better us. If I can better this couple’s lifestyle with nature being the givens, such as the sunset culture we created for them, I think this is the challenge for us creatives. The culture of living with nature perfectly describes this Mushroom House”

Enjoining his fellow architects and designers to espouse his belief, Pineda assures that cost is relative. “This is how Filipinos should live amid this beauty of nature we are blessed with. It shouldn’t be expensive. We can all afford it, to be honest. It is just a matter of design.”

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Credits

Photography

Marc Henrich Go