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| Our first project, just
up the road, is sold out with one house
available for resale. |
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| TREADING
LIGHTLY |
Many is the visitor, whiled
into seductive vortex of
Bali’s magic, who
decides to build a house
here. Lured by the affordability
of such a project compared
to home, these houses are
often built to include air
conditioning, lots of modern
appliances, swimming pools
and lawns golf links.
Bali is a small island of
finite resources which are
already being stretched
to the limit. Frequent power
cuts confirm that Bali is
using more electricity than
she receives from Java.
Many local compounds, even
in prosperous areas like
Ubud, get by on 400 watts
of electricity. (I’ve
just learned that PLN refuses
to upgrade my pembantu’s
compound to 800 or 1000
watts so the family can
run a refrigerator; they
must take at least 2000
watts, the monthly
bill
for which will be unaffordableto
them.Yet just down the road
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foreigner
has built a house using 15,000 watts.
It seems somewhat inequitable.)
Water is another issue. Much of Bali’s
electricity and water go to service
hotels and homes for the well-off, while
ordinary Balinese have to live with
small water tank might be filled two
or three times a week and 400 watts
of electricity.
There is middle ground for tamu who
want to build a house in Bali while
treading lightly on the island’s
resource base. Tony Gwilliam, the British
architect who invented the T
House, has developed a concept of small
communities with simple housing as part
philosophy he calls Minimal Impact Living.
Tony, who worked for many years with
Buckminster Fuller & built Geodesic
Domes, is deeply influenced by minimalism.
“I’ve always tried to do
more with less,“ he explains.
“The most efficient systems are
the simplest. My basic philosophy has
always been to build a house that improves
the environment instead of compromising
it. I want to help people ground back
into the earth, into Nature.”
His compact Bali T
houses faithfully meet that intention.
Designed on the principal of Japanese
architecture but using local materials,
the houses are built of termite–proof
ironwood with traditional pegged joints
and ylang ylang roofs. They are airy
and cool, with plenty of circulation.
Although the footprint is small, there
is a feeling of spaciousness in each
room and plenty of built in storage.
Furniture is built in to maximize space,
with each house featuring a Kotatsu
table which folds into floor.
Bali T in
the Rice, is located between Ubud and
Lodtunduh on the edge of a stunning
vista of uninterrupted rice fields.
The concept of building a small community
here underscores the philosophy of using
less. The 10 houses share a 14 metre
lap pool laundry, water supply and an
orchard of papaya, bananas, jackfruit,
rambutans, mangoes and coconuts. Each
house is equipped with a wastewater
garden, simple kitchen and whimsical
outdoor bathroom. The community will
share a laundry and computer center,
where the villagers will also have an
opportunity to learn computer skills.
The houses blend seamlessly with the
tranquil landscape, surrounded by shady
gardens and facing a sea of emerald
padi. Each patio faces the sunset. There
is no traffic noise here and the air
is pure and sweet. Behind the houses,
groves of mature bamboo separate the
project from the village. It’s
hard to believe this is all happening
5 minutes from Ubud.
The village that leased this land to
the project is deeply involved in its
implementation. Tony and project manager
Wayan Nama are consciously transferring
skills and knowledge to the villagers
who are working on the construction
and the garden. They learn the principals
of wastewater gardens, permaculture,
waste management and building techniques,
and will look after the maintenance
and security of the project. The women
are employed as cooks and housekeepers.
As far as possible, furniture and fittings
for the houses are made nearby to help
support local communities.
Wayan Nama, who has worked with Tony
on other projects, is an enthusiastic
proponent of open air living. “The
energy of sleeping at the edge of the
rice fields is very powerful.”
He claims.”I sleep wonderfully
here.”
Tony thinks of his T
houses more as beautiful wooden bowls
or pieces of furniture than houses.
“You really get to know your space
intimately, you become an integral part
of it. You come to know every texture
and colour, every knot hole. It becomes
a very personal space.”
I was deeply impressed by the philosophy
of environmental stewardship that is
woven into the fabric of this project.
Tony and Wayan have created a concept
which enables foreigners to live in
Bali with minimal impact on the land
and its fragile resources. And for transferable
25 year lease, the T House brings the
dream of a home in Bali a lot closer
to many visitors. |
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| by
Ibu Kat Bali
Advertiser 2002 |
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Bali T House Klod |
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Copyright © 2003-2006, T House 
email: glovil@yahoo.com
www.BaliTHouse.com |
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