Join architect Amila de Mel for a tour of Number 5, Ena de Silva's house!
In 1962 Ena de Silva and her husband Osmund commissioned Geoffrey Bawa to design their home in an modest plot in the heart of Colombo. Bawa's design negotiated the increasing urbanity of the site with an introspective design which was both radically modern and drew inspiration from traditional architectural tropes in Sri Lanka, like the central courtyard. The success of the design makes the house a pivotal project in Bawa's career. It was also the beginning of a deep friendship between Ena and her architect.
In 2009 when Ena wished to sell the land the house was built on, the Lunuganga Trust worked with a team of architects, archaeologists and engineers to careful disassemble the house and rebuild it stone by stone at Lunuganga, where it stands today.
Amila de Mel began her architectural training at MassArt in Boston, Massachusetts, prior to working with C. Anjalendran in Colombo for a year and a half. Later she joined Geoffrey Bawa where she worked for five years, principally on the Kandalama Hotel whilst being involved in the diverse range of projects flowing through Geoffrey Bawa’s studio. In 1995 she departed for further studies in architecture at the University of East London, finally returning to Sri Lanka to set up her own practice in 2000.
ADM Architects is a multidisciplinary design studio that strives to celebrate local materials, incorporate traditional crafts and to bring in the outdoors wherever possible. The practice takes great pride in the recent renovation of the Druvi de Saram House, designed by Geoffrey Bawa along with the relocation of the Ena de Silva house from Colombo to Geoffrey Bawa’s country estate, Lunuganga.
Amila has served on the National Board of Habitat for Humanity, Sri Lanka for over a decade. Her proposal for Housing with an emphasis on alternate technologies has received a European Union Grant for the construction of over 3000 houses in the North and East of the island.