During the first visit it was astonishing how quiet and peaceful the row of houses had appeared. How noisy was the little distant thoroughfare. The northern neighbours presented their pale backs. Former beautiful spaces in between turned into joyless, asphalted parking lots.
Nevertheless, the original qualities were still partly noticeable. Our polygonal footprint created spacial bulges and concaves that inweaved the new building with its neighbourhood and history. On the other side of the little creek, some of the old houses had given way to expressionless and too high buildings. The village centre fell apart and became unrecognizable. One built them in accordance with the law, but neglected long established characteristics. We wanted to do better. Tectonics Our house became higher than the existing ones.
It was not one of the historical buildings any more, for self-sufficient people and single families. Like others nowadays, it was intended to be a profitable apartment house. But by its size and impact it should strengthen the original atmosphere of the village centre. First of all, like a cold start, we began to determine the constructional concept: Because of the material muddle all around, we simply wanted to vertically put up lying wooden logs of the surrounding blockhouses, according to their load bearing.
The simple rows of squared lumber could be erected by some small local carpenters. The resulting expression touched us. It was tremendously direct, raw. At once we understood, the structural work should already be the interior finishing. So we avoided plastering and dry gypsum construction. That also corresponds to the clientele that was intended for the house. Such a raw structure would not be everyone's cup of tea. A good precondition, we found. Despite the later ordered adaptation to a wood-concrete hybrid, its character remained unchanged. Typus We developed the standard floor plans diagonally - towards the sunlight of the so called Lantern Parlor. They open the house into the neighbourhood. They seem to greet to the village. Metallic, scaffold-like awnings trace the openings of the Lantern Towers.
They span the house and, like the red colour, break up the volume. A trolleylike buffet stands in the dimly lit centre of the apartment. This is the headquarters of family life. The exceptionally large cooking and dining room is confined by an alcove. Children may play in front of it. Those who no more like to stay at the table rest here. The bright Lantern lies behind it. An usual living room is no longer needed. The corner room seems more like an outside space. Like in a winter garden one sits in front of the treetops.
