Villa 49 Residential House by Kris Lin is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 Golden A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Competition Category.
GoldArchitecture· 2026
Villa 49 Residential House
by Kris Lin
Client: Kris Lin International Design
Golden A' Design Award Winner in Architecture Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #183226The Design
About Villa 49 Residential House
Villa 49 is a renovation project that redefines residential living through the integration of water, light and landscape, transforming an ageing structure into a continuous system connecting architecture, interior and environment. A transparent pool introduces daylight into interior spaces while organising daily life around it. Through spatial continuity and material consistency, the project enhances functionality, improves living quality and strengthens the relationship between home and nature.
The Recognition
About the Golden A' Design Award
Villa 49 Residential House is a Golden A' Design Award winner, an immensely prestigious recognition granted to first-rate, marvelous, and outstanding designs. Golden winners are exceedingly innovative, visionary, and glamorously dazzling creations that reflect the prodigy, wisdom, and prowess of their designers. Villa 49 Residential House is expected to be a highly praised, trendsetting, and monumental invention that delivers unprecedented value. This Golden A' Design Award-winning design is a spectacular, respected project that highly benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. Villa 49 Residential House creates intense feelings of desire, evokes passion, encourages creativity, and fascinates us.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Villa 49 is a detached villa with three above ground floors and one basement, 1000 sqm with a 300 sqm garden. The design focuses on nature integration family interaction and social living through a pool centred spatial strategy. The original building had an ageing facade moisture damaged interiors and a poorly lit basement. A riverfront setting with surrounding woodland provides strong natural context and landscape value.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Key spatial technologies include a 6 metre seamless glass facade in the living room and a 28 metre continuous panoramic glazing system for the bedrooms, maximising daylight and views. Illuminated natural stone is applied across key spaces including living dining cinema and master suite. The dining table features a custom luminous jade surface, alongside a fully natural marble illuminated wardrobe system.
- Tags
- Vliia , Private House , Architecture,Technology-based Housing
- Production Technology
- The project integrates architecture, interior and landscape through spatial reorganisation and light introduction.
A 12 metre transparent acrylic pool is positioned as a central element. Constructed with 120 mm thick panels, it ensures structural performance and high transparency. Integrated systems include water filtration, an air source heat pump maintaining stable temperature, and a motorised cover for safety and energy efficiency.
Natural light refracts through water, bringing daylight into deeper interior areas and forming a key visual focus. - Design Challenge
- The main challenge was improving real living conditions rather than formal expression. This included introducing daylight into a dark basement improving water safety and usability supporting natural family interaction and integrating technology without visual complexity. The project balances structure materials systems and spatial openness to create a long term living environment connected to nature.
- Research
- The project explores how daylight landscape integration and material continuity influence residential experience. Large scale glazing and open corner conditions create visual continuity with the environment. Natural light becomes the primary spatial focus, while reflections from water and landscape generate dynamic variation. A unified material system reduces fragmentation and strengthens spatial coherence.
- Inspiration
- Concept Embracing Nature Intelligent Living The design reconnects people with nature through water as a spatial medium. Instead of conventional zoning, it is organised around water light air and daily life, linking spaces and enabling year round living. An integrated smart system allows responsive control of windows shading and curtains, operating quietly in the background to enhance safety efficiency and comfort.
- Project Duration
- The project was designed and completed in Shanghai, China, from January 2025 to December 2025.
- Operation Flow
- The residence is organised around a pool centred layout. Living and dining areas connect to the pool through fully openable glazing, forming a continuous indoor outdoor experience. Visual connections are maintained across floors, allowing natural interaction and supervision. Children move freely between pool and garden while adults remain connected from indoors. A fully integrated smart system enables simple one touch control of spatial and environmental elements.
- Patents
- Kris Lin Internaitonal Design
- Image Credits
- Kris Lin Internaitonal Design
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