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Once his children had left the nest, architect Suren Indhul, from i3LAB , decided to design a home for his new-found needs that would maximise space with as little impact on the environment as possible – and he won the 2011 KwaZulu-Natal Institute for Architecture Green Design Award for his efforts. “I wanted a living environment with spaces that my wife and I could use comfortably on a day-to-day basis and when required make bigger when family and friends visited,” he explains. Looking to nature for inspiration, Suren based many of the innovative eco-friendly design features of his new home on the behaviour of animals, birds and insects. For example, like an animal might shed its coat in summer, the north façade of the house has three ‘skins’ – aluminium, glass and wooden screens – which can be drawn open or closed depending on personal requirements and weather conditions.

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AT A GLANCE

Architect:  Suren Indhul of i3LAB.

Client:  Suren Indhul.

Client Brief:  A home that would maximise space with as little impact on the environment as possible.

House:  An eco-friendly house.