Heads Up!

Seen on a few sites like materialicious and Trendir a little while ago, I can't help myself and must post something about the Zufferey house by Nunatak Architectes here on Modern. The photo of the house with the backdrop of the mountain whose shape it mimics is staggering. And the green underside . . . Oh my! I love how it looks as if it dropped from the sky and just sort of stuck there in the vineyard and grew roots. – GF

Perfectly perfect

I just commented to Justin at materialicious that my heart's a thumping over this house: the wooden cabin by Group8. Look at the built-in beds and benches! And the clever Swiss windows which open sideways like doors and out like vents depending on how you twist the handles. How lovely and fresh it must smell with all that wood, too. Happy sigh! – GF

Shiny, shiny new

New:


















Old:

Read about the amazing, 90% energy self-sufficient new Monte Rosa hiker's hut at Inhabitat. The hut is one run by the Swiss Alpine Club which has accommodations of varying degrees of rusticity all along the country's extensive network of hiking trails.

Here's a website (in German or French only) devoted to the the project. The project was overseen by Andrea Deplazes, in his capacity of professor of architecture at Zürich's ETH (Institute of Technology), and partner of one of my fave architecture firms, Bearth + Deplazes.

Where are my hiking boots?! – GF

Location, location . . . what a location!

Having glided many times in a silent double-decker Swiss train along the western edge of the strange-colored yet beautiful Walensee, I was very interested to read Nico Saieh's post on this terrific house, designed by k_m.architektur, which is poised over the lake with a panoramic view of it. Nico's post is on Arch Daily, which is always good reading.

Next time I take that train ride I'll try to tear my eyes away from the stunning scenery and try to spot this house! – GF

Question: Does anyone know what makes the Walensee such a strange blue? I did some feeble research, but found nothing.

There in a heartbeat

For more photos of this tiny house in the mountains by Bearth + Deplazes, go to their website and click on "Projeckte" and choose "Wohnhäuser". Then click on the 5th little square in from the left . . . Why is this so difficult?!

When the owners leave after a weekend stay, this little house closes up tight, like a little cube with a peaked roof. Sliding doors complete the two sides which, when the residents are there open to expose a lovely, sun-soaked but sheltered space. With quite a view. . . sigh. – GF
photo Ralph Feiner

Not sure what to make of this

Our readers may have picked up on my Swiss-leanings, but here's something can't quite wrap my mind, OR my emotions, around. Do I like it, or do I not really like it? I don't think I hate it . . . but could I live in it? Take a look at Vetch Architectur's earth houses, and tell me what you think.

From the website:

With his [Peter Vetcht's] technology (sprayed concrete constructions) he manages to create building shells which encompass maximum space volume with a minimum of surface area, an ideal form for energy saving. These constructions eschew right angles and their spatial diversity overcomes the the monotony of traditional normed designs. They remind us of Antoni Gaudí's organic forms as well as Jugendstil architecture.

OK - I can dig that.

Compared to traditional residential houses built on the ground, the aim of building an earth house is another: Not to live under or in the ground, but with it. If ground and house are separated, a house is built “into the air”, resulting in the loss of heat and humidity, and the exterior shell of a building loses lifespan. The earth-house concept uses the ground as an insulating blanket that efficiently protects it from rain, low temperatures, wind and natural abrasion. An earth house does not have to be built under the ground, it can be placed onto naturally grown terrain. The earth house is a flexible construction which can be built according to the wishes of its owners, fulfilling the need for individuality, environmentally friendly construction and energy saving.

Yup, got it.

The structural engineering of an earth house provides for an organic design requiring spatial sense and creativity. Earth house architecture brings to mind habitable sculptures, incorporating artistic claim and sculptural quality.

Hmmm, well, if you say so . . .

Earth houses by Peter Vetsch are based on the interpretation of an environmentally conscious, ecological and progressive architecture. They stand out due to their closeness to nature and allow an experience beyond the usual four walls and their right angles. The earth house concept uses its surroundings as an advantage – the surroundings are not adapted to the building, the house is shaped in order to preserve the natural environment.

Well. I have to say I like the interiors very much, when they are spare and white and you feel the swoop of the the verticals meeting the horizontals . . . and, ooooh those fireplaces! And they must be quite beautiful in the snow. I can't help imagining this is the architecture of present-day, well-to-do trolls! – GF

keeping regional architecture current: the good and the not-so-good

I've always been interested in how indigenous architecture evolves, is reinterpreted and reconsidered for contemporary living.

It is maddeningly frustrating to me how new houses in our area, (not necessarily mcmansions), are constructed – I can't bring myself to say "designed" in this case – to simulate a New England farmhouse, or a "Colonial". Everything about these new houses is wrong: proportions, placement on the land, window size/shape/placement.

Example: The two top photos are of houses almost directly across the street from each other in our town. The house in the top photo replaced a sweet, if terribly dilapidated, 19th century farmhouse. The house in the next photo shows a house of possibly slightly older vintage which was recently very simply renovated. The contrast between the original and the newly-constructed is so obvious. Why is this when there are plenty of examples of the real thing all around us?!

This contemporary Swiss "farmhouse" villa in the Jura region, fits so beautifully into the architectural vernacular as well as the landscape. It is very different in many respects from the old houses of the area (which makes sense, as it no doubt houses only humans and not also their livestock and farm equipment), but in the big ways – materials used, how it looks as if it belongs on the land, etc. – it is a successful and natural extension of the regional design. It's designed by the firm Geninasca Delefortrie, in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. – GF