A Second Life for a Family House

Instead of demolishing an aging structure, this project gives a second life to a long-abandoned 50-year-old family house through adaptive reuse. The design regards the building not as an obsolete structure, but as a vessel of memory and potential.

The transformation begins with a complete renewal of the house’s infrastructure. Plumbing, drainage, and service systems were entirely rebuilt to ensure long-term safety and sustainable use. Although these interventions remain largely invisible, they provide the essential foundation for the house’s future life.

Within the narrow linear layout, circulation, daylight, and daily activities were reorganized to restore spatial clarity. Two existing partition walls with small windows were carefully preserved to protect the fragile original structure. The space between them is transformed into a 270-centimeter communal dining table, turning a former constraint into the social center of the home.

Slim aluminum-frame glass doors introduce daylight deep into the interior, reconnecting the house visually and spatially. At the rear, a higher ceiling and lowered lighting fixtures create a warm atmosphere while allowing easier maintenance.

On the second floor, two bedrooms share a double-basin washing area, one basin integrating a stainless-steel sink for rinsing cups and preparing drinks. A balcony lounge with a hanging chair offers a quiet retreat for coffee, tea, or evening relaxation.

Family memory is woven into the architecture: children’s drawings displayed along the corridor transform circulation into a gallery and timeline of everyday life.

Through infrastructural renewal, careful preservation, and subtle spatial intervention, the project transforms an abandoned house into a sustainable multi-generational home where architecture and memory continue together.