This Minimalist Modern Home In Alabang Is An Architectural Wonder
Dubbed the "Light House", architect Michael Cu Fua was able to fit this sleek and airy home in an awkward lot
The striking, modern home looks like an angular bird positioned in mid-flight. It sticks out like a blinding white beacon of glass and linear forms against the suburban milieu of terracotta-roofed, Spanish-style homes in the prestigious Alabang village, earning its name: the “Light House.”
This minimalist wonder definitely stands out on its street, and that is the intention, according to its architect, Michael Cu Fua of Ong&Ong Group. Michael reveals that the neighbors fondly referred to the house that once stood on the same lot as the “White House,” as its classical architecture resembled the famous presidential home in Washington. Now demolished and subdivided into different lots, Michael’s clients thankfully had more modern ideas for the new house.
“I’m lucky my clients were very open-minded about an ultra-modern design,” shares Michael. “They wanted to sell the house to ‘modern-minded people’ who appreciate modern spaces and concepts.”
Even though the house was built for flipping (meaning, a house built to be sold to another homeowner), the architect mentions that after touring them around Singapore in 2015 to show them the other houses that he designed, they were convinced that Filipinos who like and understand modern designs “…could accept modern-style homes in the heart of Alabang.”
With its upper floor acting like a lampshade with its seamless, wall-to-wall windows, the “Light House” (and not the “White House”) serves as a bright and refreshing example of minimalist modern style in its quiet suburban neighborhood.