House B
House B
e2a
STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING
Gruner + Wepf Ingenieure Ag
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
Continium Baumanagement Ag
YEAR
2014
LOCATION
Switzerland
CATEGORY
Houses
Text description provided by architect.
Along the Gold Coast of Lake Zurich, individual localities have lost a clear sense of identity amongst the conti-nuity of the suburban landscape.
Generic architecture determines the immediate context of any remaining open spaces, land reserves from former agricultural zones, which create a welcome pause in this otherwise monotonous rhyth.
A simple meadow space visibly benefits the densely packed rows of single-family home urbanization. In general, gardens comprise the leftover spaces in between individual houses, executed with varying degrees of success. All in all, they represent that which remains behind after a house has been con-structed – nothing more.
Our intervention takes a different stance, creating a place with clear boundaries. A perimeter exists through walls and hedges: externally territorial and hard, internally a soft, private green space. The house reflects this relationship between the inside and the outside.
Two new private outdoor spaces are created – an entry court and a garden court. In between is the part of the house with the main entrance and a garden apartment.
A stair leads to the floor above with and the mountains in the distance. Positioned around the centrally located kitchen are the dining room as well as the atelier-like, double-height living room lit from the northeast.
All of the rooms directly access the terrace and a stair leads down to the garden courtyard. A studio with a gallery to the living room is located on the floor above these common spaces.
The east-facing master bedroom works as a unit with the bathroom, dressing room, and an office space; it is like an autonomous suite interposed into the residence.
The straight lines of rough-faced, board-formed concrete walls and large, suspended, floor-to-ceiling fenestra-tion characterizes the exterior appearance.
Only a protruding window on the northern side with a solid con-crete frame reveals the actual scale and size of the house. Otherwise, the house remains muted and focused compared to the garrulousness of its surroundings.
