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THNOUH SCHOOL


Thnouh School is a reinterpretation of a traditional Khmer stilt house. In the daytime, domestic routines and social gatherings occupies what is under the house on the ground floor. On the first floor, it is mostly bedrooms, private quarters used only in the evening and night time.

Thnouh School takes the archetypical form of a stilt house section and  horizontally stretched it along the site. With formal learning spaces on the first floor, informal breakout spaces on the ground floor, the project transposes the idea of a Khmer stilt house as a village school - reinterpreting a vernacular practice into a familiar space for learning in rural Takeo, Cambodia.





LOCATION
Thnouh Village, Takeo, Cambodia

COMPLETION
2015

TEAM
Project Little Dream
Anthony Chu, Francis Wong, Lam Long Tat, Ophenia Wong, Tiffany Leung, Alex Lau

PARTNERS
Tris Kee – Community Project Workshop, University of Hong Kong
Bunseng Sum – New Futures Organisation
Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong Ltd.

SPONSORS
Hong Kong Shun Lung Yan Chak Foundation
Nelson Chen Architects



Related
Space Bom Bom Thnout School Yeon Cheon Museum





015

Thnout School


Is an experimental campus for 5 villages. Located in the open paddy fields of Takeo Province of Cambodia, the school is comprised of two classroom buildings, sanitation facilities and library organised around a courtyard. The project examines how the idea of enclosure can be achieved through an organising principle of separate volumes around a central courtyard.

The project was initiated by Project Little Dream, a charity in Hong Kong that designs and builds village schools in Cambodia. Thnout School is currently operated by Asian Hope Foundation.




LOCATION
Thnout Village, Takeo, Cambodia

COMPLETION
2019

TEAM
Project Little Dream
Alison Cheng, Francis Wong, Lam Long Tat, Alex Lau, Alex Yuen, Andrea Chan

PARTNERS 
Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong Ltd.

SPONSORS
Hong Kong Shun Lung Yan Chak Foundation
Nelson Chen Architects


Related
Space Bom Bom Yeoul Park Conservatory Thnouh School





027

Esplanade

On the serrated coastline of Fistral Bay, a new residence sits on top of a tiered terrace garden on cliffs of Esplanade Road. As the clients’ home and workspace, the design brief is to be inventive with a minimal material palette.

The 3-storey has a single-pitch zinc roof, untainted and bright-rolled. Paying homage to the former roofline, the facade is demarcated by a staggering horizontal ‘plimsoll’ line. It separates the roughcast render at lower levels with the smooth render above. Monolithic and modest in material, the textured lime render with the silver metals intends to be a refinement of British seaside architecture.



The practice managed the project on-site, acting as construction manager to manage all sub-contractors and trades directly, ensuring that they could apply the same quality of care and attention to detail to all aspects of the build. The scope of design encompasses the building itself, landscape strategy to the furniture details and paint textures. It was on site for 15 months, managed closely by founding partner James, who moved to site to manage the build Internally, the house celebrates local materials by featuring bare concrete blocks, revealing the beauty in stonemasonry of the region. With exposed galvanised contuits, ductwork, and industrial light fittings, the architecture is truthful to the unembellished infrastructure that powers it. The brief was to use everyday fixtures and objects to create something special - instilling the quality of the utilitarian and industrial aesthetic into a domestic setting.





LOCATION
Newquay, Cornwall, UK

COMPLETION
2022

SCOPE
RIBA Stage 0-6

COLLABORATOR
Philip Fai Chung

PHOTOGRPAHY
Lorenzo Zandri

DESIGN TEAM
Architect / Of Architecture
Construction Management / Of Architecture
Structural Eng. / Martin Perry Associates
Cost Consultant / Tim Hall Quantity Survey



Related
Beachfield House Woodbury House Maida Vale






029

Beachfield House

The terrace house is located in front of Towan Beach in Newquay. It has witnessed the rise of beach culture since the early 1900s. The design brief of the project is to refurbish and transform the Victorian family home into a seaside vacation destination. Making a connection between the 20th century house and the present day beach town, the design of Beachfield House employs a subtractive approach - peeling away the unnecessary embellishment and carefully revealing the original fabric of the building.

The three-storey house is held up by a heavy masonry brick structure from the ground level. By opening up the ground floor bedroom to the living room, the continuous living space now becomes double aspect - drawing natural daylight from the front to back garden via a bay window and a new set of double-glazed doors. In the main living space, new structural support was introduced where brick walls were removed. Instead of a cumbersome disguise, the exposed galvanised steel elements juxtapose with the traditional plaster moulding and crystal chandelier. The kitchen floor was an unexpected addition to the design. After stripping out, the beautiful Victorian tiles were found hiding behind layers of carpet. Similarly, revealing colourful patchwork of slurry-lime plaster and adhesive in the stairwell has become the centrepiece of the project.




The top two floors are reorganised to accommodate 4 bedrooms and a double height children’s playroom that opens up to a secret terrace. Each bedroom has its distinctive spatial character. Dormer windows are now lined with an intimate alcove seating on the top rooms. Rooms that face the sea to the North have a muted and natural palette of material finish. Existing carpet floors were taken away, and the original timber floor was sanded and restored. In contrast, bedrooms that face the town in the South are more playful. The walls pay homage to the original colours of the Victorian home before it was refurbished. Against a minimal backdrop of the vintage hues, the historical ornate fixtures were carefully repaired and displayed. Although spatially different, rooms in the house share common themes, variations of which play out over all three floors. They are the constant but subtle dialogue between the old and new. The timber-lined fenestration allows a diverse array of views – of sky and sea, as well as wider vistas of Newquay and street scenes below. The reclaimed timber details are the raw accents on which lime-slurried walls, vintage furniture and ceramics add informal texture and warmth.




LOCATION
Newquay, Cornwall, UK

COMPLETION
2023

SCOPE
RIBA Stage 0-6

ART DIRECTION & PHOTOGRPAHY
Jay Yang

DESIGN TEAM
Architect / Of Architecture
Construction Management / Of Architecture
Structural Eng. / JHA Consulting
Cost Consultant / Tim Hall Quantity Survey




Related
Esplanade House Woodbury House Maida Vale





101

Woodbury

In Barnet, North London, the Woodbury House tells the story of an octogenarian's embrace of change. As a new-build house, it was transformed from an existing extension from an Edwardian property by applying the concept of architectural mirroring.

The architectural concept draws inspiration from decalcomania - the art of creating mirror patterns through folded paint. However, this mirroring is not mere replication. The new structure responds thoughtfully to practical necessities: the ground floor follows the natural site levels, whilst a continuous thermal envelope ensures modern efficiency. An accessible bedroom and bathroom for her on the ground floor. Living spaces flow naturally between cooking and dining areas, creating rooms filled with light from multiple aspects.


The most common example of decalcomania involves applying paint to paper then folding it, applying pressure and then unfolding the paper to reveal a mirror pattern. In architecture, this doesn’t mean to completely replicate the existing, but it will be practical needs that steer the design decisions. The project's commissioner, Kathryn, approached the build with the pioneering spirit that characterised modernist architects. Rather than growing old amongst accumulated memories, she chose to curate select pieces from her past - handwoven shawls, Edwardian furniture, and her late husband's handcrafted rosewood table - for their new context. The house achieves environmental performance through Passivhaus principles, incorporating mineral wool insulation, mechanical ventilation heat recovery, and an air source heat pump. Photovoltaic panels and strategic cross-ventilation further reduce energy consumption. Materials tell their own story of continuity: handmade burgundy bricks from Cumbria converse with the existing house, while rosemary terracotta tiles from the demolished music room find new life in the build. Inside, elm floorboards from the original structure have been transformed into kitchen cabinetry, each element carrying forward the building's memory while embracing its future.




LOCATION
Barnet, London, UK

STATUS
Completed, 2024

SCOPE
New-build Residential Home
RIBA Stage 0-6

DESIGN TEAM
Architect / Of Architecture
Planning Consultant / PlainView
Structural Eng. / Geared Partnership
Civil Eng. / Geared Partnership
M&E Eng. / TBK Projects
Cost Consultant / KM Dimensions (Stage 4-5), Tim Hall Quantity Survey (Stage 2)
Arbriculturalist / Tree Sense Arboricultural Consultants
Ecologist / Aven Ecology

PHOTOGRAPHY
Lorenzo Zandri





Related
Beachfield House Esplanade House Maida Vale