Eight buildings with inverted-pitched roofs that resemble butterfly wings

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Otherwise known as inverted-pitched roofs, the V-shaped structures take their name from the angled form of a butterfly's wings.

Architects and designers sometimes use butterfly roofs to help conceal a building within its setting, enhance interior light or collect rainwater. The characterful style is also used simply to add visual interest to an architectural project.

Here are eight buildings with butterfly roofs from the Vivid Bulletinarchive.

Butterfly House, UK, by The DHaus Company

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clad the facade, creating a repeated pattern that aims to emphasise the extension's V-shape.

Find out more about Butterfly House ›

Nanjing Wanjing Garden Chapel, China, by AZL Architects

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lined the angular church with vertical strips of timber that create a semi-transparent facade.

"The outer shell serves as a filter of the view outside, implying the start of a religious spatial experience," said the studio.

Find out more about Nanjing Wanjing Garden Chapel ›

Butterfly House, USA, by Feldman Architecture

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Surrounded by meadows, the home's design was informed by the owners' vision of butterflies fluttering around the landscape. As well as this "poetic gesture", the V-shaped roofs also open up views, shelter outdoor spaces and help with the harvesting of rainwater.

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Home extension, UK, by Kenny Forrester

home extension to offer an unusual alternative to more traditional flat or slanted profiles.

"It provides a dynamic roof inside as well as out," explained Forrester. "It also allows for a much larger volume internally and achieves a 3.6-metre ceiling height at its highest point."

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Piaule, USA, by Garrison Architects

, spread across prefabricated wooden cabins perched on stilts and a central lodge.

designed the lodge with a swooping butterfly roof, as well as cedar cladding and floor-to-ceiling windows that offer panoramic views.

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Butterfly House, UK, by Oliver Leech Architects

added an accessible home to the corner of a garden in Surrey.

cladding also helps it blend into the shadows of the nearby trees.

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La Cabañita, Guatemala, by Paz Arquitectura

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. These structures feature V-shaped canopies that invert the form of the original building's gabled roof and provide the interior spaces with more light through high, operable clerestories positioned under the eaves.

Find out more about La Cabañita ›

Home extension, UK, by Pamphilon Architects

-clad extension to a terraced east London house is defined by a butterfly roof, which follows the line of the existing dwelling.

selected timber slats as cladding that will eventually weather grey over time and blend with the brick patio and window frames.

Find out more about this home extension ›

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