THE DRAGON SLEEPS BY THE SEA

Showcasing terrain-led sensitivity, turning to horizontal compositions, endemic materiality, and microclimate mapping, AYANA Komodo by globally integrated design firm WATG signals a new direction in architecture across remote geographies — serene, low-lying and quietly radical

- By Ankita Rathod

A quiet shift is underway in the Asia-Pacific region: buildings are beginning to recede rather than rise, and to translate rather than transform their sites.

At Waecicu Beach in Labuan Bajo — one of the world's most biodiverse marine corridors — AYANA Komodo by WATG reveals what this shift looks like in built form. Instead of landing on the landscape, it studies and moves with it — signalling a broader turn toward geological empathy and non-intrusive spatial intelligence.

As volcanic ridges descend toward water, narrowing into a cove where hillside meets sea, topography becomes the first design tool. The building responds to terrain rather than arrival, stretching horizontally and settling into a sequence of terraces. The presence feels measured — less like construction and more like translation. From above, it reads as a continuous line drawn across the land. It bends, settles and maintains a deliberate dialogue between elevation and ocean. The structure neither disappears nor dominates — it listens, then responds.

THE FORM

The architectural form is designed as a descent. Terraces step down the hillside in calibrated intervals, aligning with the natural fall of the land. Each level recedes from the next, preserving sightlines and airflow across every trajectory. Horizontality replaces height as a design principle. From the bay, AYANA Komodo appears to move with the coast — an articulated spine that tracks light and shadow.