Approaching the house, it seems monolithic, almost hermetic. Two incisions divide the building, which sits prominently on a relatively level hill, guide guests to a small entrance niche and offer a view of the introverted courtyard to the north. The hard shell opens up towards the valley and the south side, and the extensive glazing reveals the scenery and mountain panorama. The terrace faces the pond and small integrated stream, which blend in with their natural surroundings, lends the courtyard a sense of an open air living room and connects the entrance floor to the grounds via a ramp.
The smooth exposed concrete surfaces find their counterpart in the interior in the tactile and optical softness of the white pine floors, built-in furniture and walls. The character of the house turns out to be bright, inviting and almost homey. Windows and doors in white aluminium bring robustness into play and add to the powerful appearance of the concrete.
Germann House, by marte.marte Architekten, Photography by Bruno Helbling
via: Arch Daily
March 15th, 2010 at 5:05 PM
Interesting, severe, oneline design, very good connection inside-outside
March 16th, 2010 at 3:23 AM
Im currently working on a project and developing samples for a blonde oak. Difficult I must say. I think that MMA have really succeeded in getting a perfect consistency and softness to the oak. Grrr….If I could only get my hands on their spec!
March 20th, 2010 at 2:00 PM
Nice work. I really hope to find some clients with this kind of favour for architecture.