The Beauty Of Unexpected Forms

Attic Lab, Malappuram, Kerala

- Sharmila Chakravorty

Taking cues from traditional Kerala architecture, Shinoop and Revathy Shinoop create an intriguing attic-based home office for themselves that responds to their need for multifunctional spaces dedicated to the practice architecture and music, in a compact footprint that would be modern yet cost-effective.

Most successful architecture and design projects are generally those that carefully consider their site and other site-specific requirements in order to respond to them, and create something that is apt for the time and place, as well as the physical and metaphysical context. But do they always have to conform to traditionally prescribed and prevalent forms and typologies? How does one root design in the context, while still innovating and breaking away from the norms? The Attic Lab, a home studio for architect couple Shinoop and Revathy Shinoop, is perhaps an attempt by the architects to address these questions.

The project was born out the need to create a workspace for the couple, which would reflect their shared passion for architecture, music, and painting. Speaking about this, the architects mention, “The site is within the premises of our ancestral home. It has an extent of 3 cents (1 acre = 100 cents) and has marshy soil condition. We envisioned that our ideal workspace would need to be flexible and accommodate multiple programs such as a workspace, a place to practice music, as well as a space for unwinding and discussions.”