Ithal

The plot is long and narrow — 4.9 cents measuring just 5.5 metres across and 26 metres deep. On a site this tight, the usual worry is a dark, corridor-like house with windows only at the two ends.

Ithal answers the width problem from the inside out. A courtyard and a series of light wells are cut into the depth of the plan, drawing daylight and air down into rooms that would otherwise sit in shadow. The section becomes as important as the plan — the house breathes vertically where it cannot spread sideways.

A brick-façade balcony gives the street elevation weight and texture while filtering light and view. The outcome is a compact home that feels generous: full of daylight, cross-ventilated, and unmistakably its own.