Geoffrey Bawa's Colombo home that is well known as "Number 11" is situated in 33rd Lane, Bagatelle Road, Colombo 3 on a charming and secluded cul-de-sac.
Bawa's Number 11 was the third of a row of four small bungalows occupied a tiny alley at the end of 33rd Lane which he bought in 1959, shortly after he returns from London. During the first two years of his residence there, Bawa lived in a compact bungalow that he created with a sitting room - more of an open veranda, a small office alcove, a virtually windowless bedroom, a small bathroom, a minute kitchen and the room for his manservant. The fourth house was the biggest in the row, fell vacant two years later and added into the existing house to provide a guest room, photographic studio as well as a formal sitting room and a dinning room which together could serve as a gallery for small art exhibitions. He was able to purchase the first two bungalows between his property along the lane in 1968 and embark on a radical remodeling of the whole block. He demolished the first house and in its place built a four story tower.
The result of Bawa's constant innovation and addition to the residence is a home that masterfully blends the two architectural traditions, twentieth - century European modernism and traditional Sri Lankan design.
Bawa's Number 11 was the third of a row of four small bungalows occupied a tiny alley at the end of 33rd Lane which he bought in 1959, shortly after he returns from London. During the first two years of his residence there, Bawa lived in a compact bungalow that he created with a sitting room - more of an open veranda, a small office alcove, a virtually windowless bedroom, a small bathroom, a minute kitchen and the room for his manservant. The fourth house was the biggest in the row, fell vacant two years later and added into the existing house to provide a guest room, photographic studio as well as a formal sitting room and a dinning room which together could serve as a gallery for small art exhibitions. He was able to purchase the first two bungalows between his property along the lane in 1968 and embark on a radical remodeling of the whole block. He demolished the first house and in its place built a four story tower.
The result of Bawa's constant innovation and addition to the residence is a home that masterfully blends the two architectural traditions, twentieth - century European modernism and traditional Sri Lankan design.
