A Collage of Outcasts Coffee Shop and Office / 324PRAXIS

Thao Dien is a high-standard living area in Ho Chi Minh City, predominantly inhabited by the middle class. The architecture in this area reflects a perspective of detachment from context – a deliberate disregard for integration, vividly marked by perimeter walls reaching 2.6 meters high – the maximum allowable height for structures in this area. In reality, some houses have exceeded this height to fulfill the utmost need for privacy. The building, prior to renovation, was an abandoned house for five years. This is a region often facing tidal flooding, prompting the former owner to establish a base floor height of 1100mm from the sidewalk – including the garden.