This contemporary family home features a unique pyramid roof and the upper floor, which is maximally exposed

Perched on a hill in one of the most beautiful regions of Cape Town, South Africa, this extraordinary residence is one of the most recent and most amazing projects completed by the architects at SAOTA. It’s a family home unlike any other you’ve seen thanks to the inverted pyramid roof. This design allowed the architects to frame the top floor of the house in glass, creating a clerestory window around the volume.

The building is organized on three floors. The lower level contains a guest room, a cinema room, a gym and the garage. The one in the middle houses the bedrooms and the work spaces while the one at the top holds most of the social areas: an open plan kitchen, a dining space and a lounge area. What very interesting is the fact not the upper floor is one the only one which has a close relationship with the outdoors. Each level is in fact connected to its own set of gardens and courtyard spaces.

In order to allow the focus to remain of the views and the connection between the house and its surroundings, the color palette is kept simple. The palette of materials and finishes used throughout is reduced to only a few natural ones. The living spaces clustered on the top floor enjoy panoramic views of the city and the wonderful landscape surrounding the house.

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There’s a large pool with a deck and the back of the house is fully opened to the surroundings

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Landscaping is chic and lush, feels very natural, and sliding doors open the house to the garden

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A stone wall hides the lower floors from the street making them private

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The front door is made of metal and is pivoting

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The clerestory windows which frame the upper floor allow natural light and views of the sky and the nearby mountains inside the house

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The spaces feel open yet intimate and cozy, there are skylights and windows

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The living space is done with chairs and a table, skylights and extensive glazing fills the house with light

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The kitchen is done with light-colored wooden cabinets and stone

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Here’s a secret courtyard that refreshes the spaces and makes them more welcoming

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In order to allow the focus to remain of the views and the connection between the house and its surroundings, the color palette is kept simple

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A large and sophisticated home office occupies a section of the middle floor and features an entire wall of bookshelves

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Each of the three levels is connected to its own set of garden and courtyard spaces

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The bathrooms are as stylish as the rest of the house, featuring white marble walls and glass enclosures