d+a | Issue 115 • Apr/May 2020

65 PROJECTING WARMTH The everyday clay brick – a Studio Bikin staple – appears prevalently in Sudut House, laid in specific bonds and orientations to form the building’s façades, perimeter walls, staircase edge and even the driveway. In wall applications, the brickwork is loadbearing and generally unreinforced, relying instead on brick stiffeners spaced at intervals to provide lateral stability. Yet, getting to the desired level of accuracy required close monitoring, due to the contractor’s relative inexperience with unrendered brickwork and off-form concrete. Shares Farah, “Initially, we had some trouble, as he wasn’t used to laying (exposed) bricks, so we started him on the perimeter walls first. Bricklaying is actually a skill, and his workers weren’t trained to do it. But they were open to learning, hence the results.” FARAH AZIZAN, DIRECTOR, STUDIO BIKIN ABOVE. Stiffeners built into the courses of brickwork extend into a staircase wall, whose double-layer is grounded and lends gravitas to the well-lit main hallway.