CD Designs Blog

The title says it all, but then again, what do we mean? We are referring to another smart concrete innovation that we discovered recently, this time over in Ahmadabad, India. The “house with balls” cost just $12,000 to build, and was created by construction firm Matharoo Associates. The balls in question are weights for the large shutters on both sides of the house, which open and close via an ingenious pulley system. It gives the house a remarkable animated feel, as the concrete baubles swing gently in the wind when the shutters are partially open, or dip into the lily padded ponds when the shutters are fully open. You can see plenty of pictures over at dezeen.com.

Who would live in a house like this? It belongs to the owner of an aquarium – the house contains four huge tanks, used for breeding his fish. It provides perfect conditions for this, as he can control the temperature via the shutters. And when he is not there, it doubles as a weekend retreat for himself, and paying guests. It provides ample living space for relaxing or merrymaking, and opening the shutters opens the whole area up, to provide more space and completely different dynamic!

And yes, it’s nearly all built using concrete! Another testament to the durability and low cost of our favourite building material.

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