This house situated in an old fishing village in Sweden features pale pine floors, high ceilings and a wood-burning stove inside a concrete block (+ slideshow).
Swedish studio Sandell Sandberg designed the house as part of the Wiklands Backe development, a cluster of 11 homes located in the coastal village of Kivik on the southern tip of Sweden.
The house centres around the cast iron stove, which sits in a large concrete block in the centre of the front room with its flue exposed by the full height of the building. “The high ceiling makes the interior rather unique despite its traditional shape,” said the architects.
An open-plan kitchen is located towards the rear of the space, furnished with white cabinets and a marble worktop.
On the first floor mezzanine, a lamp hangs from the apex of the pitched roof to illuminate a study area overlooking the front room.
The master bedroom is tucked away at the rear of the ground floor, while two more are located upstairs and feature angled skylights.
Turquoise tiles form a diagonal pattern across the walls and floor of the bathroom.
Sandell Sandberg has developed three standard house types for the Wiklands Backe development. With a floor area of 140 square metres, this is the smallest of the three designs and is being replicated for five other properties.
The exterior of the house is divided into two sections. The front of the building is clad with Danish hand-crafted brick whilst the back features black pine on the ground floor and a grey zinc roof.
“The reason why the buildings have been divided in this way is to break down the scale,” Wiklands Backe’s Theresa Digerfeldt-Månsson told Dezeen. “They should connect to the ‘style’ and tradition of the old fishing villages on the Skane east coast – villages that are characterised by a great variety of volumes and materials.”
All roofs are pitched at an angle of 45 degrees to comply with local planning regulations.
“The aim of the project has been to develop houses that connect to the tradition of the fishing village without copying it and to build houses that are perceived as attractive today as they will be within 100 years,” added Digerfeldt-Månsson.
A small garage is included with this property and sits alongside the house.
A layer of grasses, herbs and flowers blankets the roof of this hump-shaped house near Reims, France, by architect Patrick Nadeau (+ slideshow).
Named La Maison-vague, which translates as Wave House, Patrick Nadeau‘s project is one 63 experimental houses being built in the commune of Sillery, near Reims, and was designed with an arching profile to resemble the shape of a mound or hill.
Plants wrap around the east and west facades, primarily to provide thermal insulation but also to allow the house to fit in with its rural surroundings.
“The traditional relationship between house and garden is changed, disturbed even; the project encompasses both in the same construction,” said Nadeau.
The architect worked alongside Pierre Georgel of landscape design firm Ecovégétal to design a planting scheme that encompasses herbs such as thyme and lavender alongside sedums, grasses and various other perennials.
“The plants were selected for their aesthetic qualities and their ability to adapt to the environment,” he said. ” The technical challenge lay primarily in the steep slope that required the development of innovative systems for the maintenance of land and water retention.”
An automatic watering system is integrated into the structure but is only intended for use during severe drought conditions.
Timber was used for the entire structure of the house. An arching wooden frame creates the curved profile, while a raised deck lifts the building off the ground and creates an outdoor seating area.
The north and south elevations are clad with transparent polycarbonate, which screens a mixture of clear glass windows and opaque timber panels.
The front entrance leads directly into an L-shaped living and dining space that occupies most of the ground floor of the house. A kitchen and bathroom are tucked into one corner, while a spiral staircase leads up to a pair of bedrooms on a mezzanine floor above.
Here’s a project description from Patrick Nadeau:
La Maison-vague / Patrick Nadeau
The project context is based on experimentation, and initiated by the public housing council of Reims (HLM – l’Effort Rémois) – in a subdivision of 63 lots with heavy economic constraints.
La Maison-vague uses vegetation for its architectural and environmental qualities, particularly in terms of thermal insulation. A fully vegetated shell protects the interior from summer heat and winter cold. The basic form is to encapsulate within a single mat of vegetation that undulates and floats above the ground, at sitting height (the rim surrounding the wooden shelf is kind of a big bench). The traditional relationship between house and garden is changed, disturbed even, the project encompasses both in the same construction.
Inside, the volumes are also very simple. The ground floor, living room, kitchen and multimedia space can be opened by sliding walls. Upstairs, two bedrooms are separated by a bathroom, which is accessed by a mezzanine.
Particular attention is paid to interior and exterior relationships. The terrace at the back of the house extends to the areas of the ground floor, for example, to dry in the sun after bathing.
Upstairs shower space is enclosed by a bay window opening onto a panorama of nature. A sectional view that shows the inner and outer volumes does not exactly follow the same form. The inner space is drawn, at the top, by a semicylindrical shell and, on the ground floor by large cabinets restoring vertical walls, which includes a wardrobe, library, media storage and kitchen furniture.
The house is built entirely of wood (structure, hull and facades gears). Only the foundation is concrete. The thermal performance is ensured by the north-south orientation, the vegetation of the hull and double wall facades. The outer walls are made of polycarbonate and the inner walls of glass and wood. A small wood stove in the living room provides heating for the entire space.
The vegetation has been designed with Pierre Georgel (Ecovégétal). The house is covered with soil that mimics that of a natural slope. The technical challenge lay primarily in the steep slope that required the development of innovative systems for the maintenance of land and water retention.
The plants were selected for their aesthetic qualities and their ability to adapt to the environment (resistance over time and minimal maintenance). It is a mix of sedums, grasses, thyme, lavender and other perennials and small aromatic herbs that are distributed according to the inclination of the hull. An automatic watering system is provided but it is only reserved for periods of very severe drought.
The house is alive, changing its appearance, colour and odour with the seasons. New plants can be brought by the wind, insects or birds and gives the building a certain character or even a fallow ground-wave, hence the name La Maison-vague, which could equally and poetically signify an ocean wave or an open field (terrain vague).
Cross section
Surface area: 110 m2 Place of construction: the commune of Sillery near Reims
Long section
Client: Effort Rémois Project management: Patrick Nadeau Technical Consultant: AD & Services Vegetation (experimental): Ecovégétal
The concrete walls inside this house in Poland by Ultra Architects were formed against wooden boards, creating a grainy texture that inverts the surface of the timber-clad facade (+ slideshow).
Named Seaside House, the three-storey residence was designed by Poznań firm Ultra Architects for a site behind the sand dunes of a beach in north-west Poland. This meant that groundwater levels were particularly high, so the house had to be built with a heavy waterproof structure.
Architects Marcin Kościuch and Tomasz Osięgłowski chose a concrete framework that could be left exposed on walls and ceilings throughout the interior.
“The building’s structure was designed as a monolithic shell made of reinforced concrete,” they said. “This kind of construction secures safety, geometric stability and tightness. It also let us use a structural material as a natural finishing of interiors.”
The exterior walls are clad with the same kind of timber panels used as formwork for the in-situ concrete, allowing the two different materials to match one each other in texture.
“In effect we achieved a characteristic reversal – warm wood on the outside and rough concrete with imprints of a formwork inside a house,” said the architects.
The house was constructed on the exact footprint of a demolished older house to prevent disturbing the roots of any surrounding pine trees.
The volume of the building is made up of two rectilinear blocks that are offset from one another. These form the two main floors, while a third storey is buried below ground level.
Bedrooms are all positioned on the uppermost floor, including a master suite with its own living room, while living and dining areas occupy the middle floor and open out to a wooden deck. A swimming pool is located in the basement.
Read on for more information from Ultra Architects:
Seaside House
The very first task was to choose a structural material which would work in heavy natural conditions on a plot where the building had to stand.
For the sake of instability of the ground and high level of ground water, the shell of the building must be heavy and waterproof. It also must be firm and solid since we designed large windows to open the interior for a beautiful view of a seaside landscape.
The answer was simple – concrete. Choosing it, we wanted to make best use of its qualities. Our main idea was sincerity of material – concrete is true both in the way it is used and it looks. These two aspects are not separated from each other but they create a coherent wholeness.
The building’s structure was designed as a monolithic shell made of reinforced concrete. This kind of construction secures safety, geometric stability and tightness. It also let us use a structural material as a natural finishing of interiors. Concrete has become a leitmotif of the whole design, also determining aesthetic solutions in interiors. Grey colour and a rough texture of concrete are balanced with whiteness of some internal walls and bright, wooden floors.
Another important material we used in this design is wood. Exterior cladding of elevations is made of screw-in vertical boards (in analogy to the formwork for monolithic structure). In effect we achieved a characteristic reversal – warm wood on the outside and rough concrete with imprints of a formwork inside a house. The third material is a sheet metal. Window-frames and all other exterior metal elements were designed in graphite colour.
The house was built in a coastal town, on a plot located just behind dunes. It replaced an old building which was too small and architecturally unattractive. Pine trees grow all over the plot and we wanted to save them all. New cubical block was inserted in the place of a former building this way not to remove any of them.
All elevations of a building are almost identical (each follows the same pattern). Characteristic point of a house is an entrance area which offers two entry points located in both eastern corners of a building, in a part of a plot adjacent to the road. Along the south-west and north-west elevation there is a wooden terrace with a built-in barbecue stove.
Each storey of a building acts different function. The ground floor which was designed as an open space is intended for daily home activities. First floor serves leisure and entertainment functions. It is divided into two sections: the bigger one, with a view for a sea, it’s owners’ private zone.
It contains a small living room, bedroom, wardrobe and a bathroom. In the southern part of a floor there are situated three identical guest rooms with bathrooms. Basement accommodates storage and technical facilities as well as a swimming-pool.
Architects: Marcin Kościuch, Tomasz Osięgłowski / Ultra Architects Collaborators: Łukasz Piszczałka, Marta Perlik-Napierała Year: 2013 Area: 470 sqm
News: British architect Adrian Priestman claims to have designed and installed the first 3D-printed components to be approved for use in the construction industry.
“This is truly the first architectural application of the 3D nylon sintered technology,” Priestman told Dezeen, referring to a decorative sheath he developed for a canopy on the roof of the refurbished 6 Bevis Marks office building in central London. “It’s architectural in so far as it’s been through an approval process and tried and tested, and actually installed in a building. It’s an approved product for use in the construction industry.”
Asked whether there are any other 3D printed building components currently approved for use in the construction industry, Priestman said: “Not that I am aware of. If you go to the offices of a major architect like Foster + Partners, they’ve got their own 3D-printing machine, but they’re not actually using the material to perform a function within a building; they’re using it as a modelling tool.”
While many studios have been experimenting with 3D-printing architectural structures and even working towards printing whole houses, Priestman believes his is the first real architectural application of 3D-printing because it has been approved for use by a major construction firm. “There may be someone who has done an installation, but this is a building component that has to stand for fifteen or twenty years; as long as everything that has been warrantied on the building,” he said.
Daigram showing shroud and steels in place
The 3D-printed sheaths were designed to surround a series of complex joints between columns and a web of arms that support the canopy’s EFTE plastic roof. The components were subjected to rigorous environmental testing before being included in the warranty for the roof by EFTE specialist Vector Foiltec, which was responsible for the installation of the canopy.
The architect became involved in the project as a consultant after Vector Foiltec decided that cast steel nodes normally used in this scenario would not fulfil the practical or aesthetic requirements of this project. “They’re not a hundred percent accurate and you can see the process left on the face of the steel,” explained Priestman.
Exploded diagram showing shroud and steels
The casings he designed respond to the individual nature of each intersection and were modelled using 3D computer software. They were then printed in sections using a selective laser sintering process and applied to cover the unsightly joints. “It is a purely decorative finish which makes the steel look like it is a cast node but in effect it’s not,” said Priestman. “So if the shroud fell off the steelwork would still stay standing.”
To prove to the client and the building contractor, Skanska, that the parts were suitable for this application, Priestman took samples to an accelerated testing facility. “We got it tested in 1000-mile-per-hour winds, extreme weather tested,” he said. “Once I had done that, the product was approved by the big contractors for the building.”
The architect says he is now working with Skanska’s innovation team on other potential uses for 3D printing within the building industry. “I’m pushing now to find places to use [3D printing]. It’s going to be driven from an engineering point of view,” added Priestman. “How big can we go? How much of a structural element is it? Let’s start putting it in the built environment.”
This new metro station in Leipzig, Germany, by Swiss architect Max Dudler comprises a 140 metre-long tunnel made up of illuminated glass blocks.
The Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz S-Bahn station is one of four stops along the new Leipzig City Tunnel railway line that has been under construction for over ten years and is set to open next month, creating a new link between some of the city’s major stations.
Swiss architect Max Dudler, whose previous projects include a glowing library and a castle visitor centre, won a competition to design the station in 1997 with his proposal for a glowing tunnel with a gently curved concourse and raw concrete details.
Back-lit glass blocks are arranged in groups within a concrete framework to create large glowing squares across the entire length of the walls and ceiling.
“The seemingly endless repetition of the same element in the course of the slightly curved, light-filled hall increases the sensation of the dimensions of this already large structure,” said the studio.
The station platform is covered in pale terrazzo and interspersed with concrete volumes that form seating areas and signage boards.
“All station furnishings of the station are arranged as geometric concrete sculptures,” added the studio.
Entrances are positioned at the north and south ends of the platform, where solid concrete staircases are sandwiched between escalators. At street level, these entrances are contained within rectilinear structures that were also constructed using glass blocks.
Photography is by Stefan Müller.
Here’s a project description from the design team:
Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz Station
S-Bahn trains will cross beneath the centre of Leipzig from December 2013. This is when the 5.3 kilometre long city tunnel Leipzig, a joint development of Deutsche Bahn AG and the Free State of Saxony, will be completed. Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz / Platz der Friedlichen revolution station on the southern end of the historic city centre is one of four stations of the major project that is currently one of the largest inner-city infrastructure projects in Europe.
The design of the station is based on architect Max Dudler’s successful competition entry from 1997. The Swiss architect’s impressive 140 metre long and 20 metre wide station concourse has just recently been awarded the city of Leipzig’s architecture award.
The station concourse, with a rectangular section and a slight longitudinal curve, is situated 20 metres below ground. Walls and ceilings of the elongated, column-free hall are clad with large, backlit prefabricated glass blocks set into a framework of fair-faced precast concrete. This gives the station concourse a bright and spacious feel. Extreme repetition of one and the same motif makes its actual dimensions almost intangible for passengers.
The light-coloured, jointless terrazzo flooring of the insular platform acts as a quiet counterpoint to the seemingly endless pattern of the walls. All necessary station furniture is arranged on the platform in the shape of geometrical concrete sculptures, all functions such as seating, timetables and ticket machines having in a sense been subtracted from or carved out of the concrete cubes.
The station concourse’s supporting structure of precast reinforced concrete is not visible behind the glass block cladding. The wall elements of the glass block envelope are anchored to a steel substructure on the tunnel wall. The ceiling elements are suspended from the building shell.
Passengers access the station through the entrances on the north and south ends of the station that are fitted with solid staircases, escalators and elevators. The architectural design of the two entrances is in deliberate contrast to the filigree, seemingly transparent station concourse. As soon as they dip beneath the surface of the square, the staircases and their inner casings are made entirely of fair-faced concrete. The minimalist, almost coarse design conveys an impression of descending towards the interior of the earth, as if it was tunnelled directly into the rock.
The stairs and the platform combine seamlessly into a monolithic ribbon. Similar to the station concourse, the aboveground entrance buildings have also been fitted with glass block components. They will help bring the square to life when illuminated at night.
Wilhelm Leuschner was a social democrat politician and part of the resistance against National Socialism. Formerly known as Königsplatz, this square in Leipzig was renamed Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz in his honour in 1945. In 2013 it was finally renamed “Platz der Friedlichen Revolution” to honour the important role it played during German reunification.
Exposed timber beams branch out from the tops of columns that support the roof of this cafeteria in the Ushimado district of Setouichi city in Japan by Niji Architects (+ slideshow).
Designed by Masafumi Harada of Tokyo office Niji Architects with AI Design and OHNO JAPAN, the cafeteria is used by employees from a nearby construction company and by members of the local community.
The architects developed a cross-braced timber frame made from Douglas fir columns with a section of 120 by 120 millimetres and beams of 180 by 120 millimetres, which supports a corrugated metal roof and is left exposed inside the single-storey building.
“The detailing and materials used [are] intentionally designed to appear unrefined to create a relaxing atmosphere helping visitors to unwind within the space,” explained the architects.
Throughout the interior, materials are used in their raw state, with chunky chipboard covering the ceiling and walls, bare light bulbs hanging from black cords and poured concrete used for the floor.
One side of the building is covered in full-height glazing, which is fixed directly to the timber frame using plywood battens. Translucent glass on the opposite facade provides privacy while allowing more light to reach the interior.
A kitchen at one end of the building can be seen from the main dining hall, which adjoins a lounge area containing comfortable seating and exercise equipment.
Photography is by Masafumi Harada.
Here’s a short project description from the architects:
This cafeteria is a timber framed, single-story building located in Ushimado of Setouchi city, Okayama prefecture, Japan.
It serves as a canteen for a local construction company as well as a cafeteria for the local community.
The building structure and its finishes are kept simple and the presence of the building is kept to a bare minimum.
The building design focuses mainly on its primary function as a cafeteria for the local people and to familiarise itself to the community.
The folded metal plate roof is directly fixed to the 3 m grid timber structural frame, which consists of 120 mm x 120 mm timber used for columns, foundation, bracings and 180 mm x 120 mm timber beams.
The building completes itself with glass walls, which are fixed directly to the timber structure with timber battens.
The detailing and materials used intentionally designed to appear unrefined to create a relaxing atmosphere helping visitors to unwind within the space.
With a single large internal space and full aperture to the external views, this highly transparent building becomes a bright, open and inviting cafeteria.
We believe this construction method can also be used for other building types. It can be a prototype of new prefabricated timber construction with endless possibilities for further development.
Project name: Cafeteria in Ushimado Location of site: Okayama, Japan Building area: 166.32 m2 Total floor area: 144.00 m2 Type of Construction: Timber structure Number of stories: 1F Building height: 3.37 ｍ Principal use: Shop (Cafeteria) Project by: Niji Architects + AI Design + OHNO JAPAN Principal designer: Masafumi Harada / Niji Architects Construction: UG Giken Design period: August 2012 – December 2012 Construction period: January 2013 – April 2013
Finish
Structure: Exposed timber structure Roof: Folded metal roof External façade: Clear float glass t=10 mm with glass film Window: Wooden sash window and aluminum sash window
Angular zinc-clad volumes fold around a central courtyard and stretch out towards ocean views at this house designed by Australian architect John Wardle on the scenic Great Ocean Road in Victoria (+ movie).
Named Fairhaven Beach House, the three-storey residence is perched on the top of a hill. John Wardle Architects laid out the building with an uneven U-shaped plan to create a wall of windows facing the water and an east-facing courtyard that is protected from coastal winds.
The route from the entrance to a large living room was intended as a dramatic progression through the building, passing by a cantilevered study and through a pivoting asymmetric door.
“It is a dynamic, fluid journey through the house from arrival to the ocean view,” said the architects, whose past projects include a house on a working sheep farm in Tasmania.
“It is choreographed to increase anticipation before reaching the main living space,” they added.
A large kitchen and dining room is positioned on one side and projects even further towards the coastline, plus a secluded balcony provides an opportunity to dine outdoors.
“The house is carefully zoned to allow for privacy and communal gathering,” said the architects.
While the exterior of the house is clad with grey zinc panels to blend in with the tones of the bush landscape, the interior features timber surfaces across every wall, floor and ceiling.
Two bedrooms are located on the ground floor and a wooden staircase leads up to a third on the upper storey.
A garage, wine cellar and informal living room are tucked away in the basement.
Fairhaven Beach House topped the residential category at the Australian National Architecture Awards earlier this month. Judges described it as “a masterful control of form and space, scale, material and detail”.
Here’s more information from John Wardle Architects:
Fairhaven Residence
The Fairhaven Beach House is located on top of the ridgeline above the Great Ocean Road on the Victorian coastline. The site enjoys panoramic views over the southern ocean and surf beach below.
The proportions, orientation and dimensions of windows have been tailored to particular views and to reveal internal spaces. The design process has been one akin to scenography, bringing together sensory and spatial experiences to frame the theatre of inhabitation within.
This beach house coils and steps around a protected central courtyard, which creates an outdoor space sheltered from the harsh prevailing winds. The living area doors and an oversized sliding kitchen window open up and integrate the courtyard with the house during fine weather.
It is a dynamic, fluid journey through the house from arrival to the ocean view; it is choreographed to increase anticipation before reaching the main living space.
As you step beneath a cantilevered study into a dramatic vertical entry space, you become acutely aware of a number of twists and folds along its length that make the transformation into the horizontal living space. Its main window aperture matches the cinematic proportions of the ocean view.
The house is carefully zoned to allow for privacy and communal gathering. The upper level houses a suite of private rooms including a main bedroom, ensuite, study and viewing terrace. The entry level contains a pair of bedrooms and bathroom. The main living and dining space is where the occupants come together. A garage, laundry and informal living space are hidden from view in a basement level.
Materially the house is clad in a green-grey zinc cladding, for both its longevity and natural colouring that merges with the scrub and tea tree landscape. In contrast, the interior of the house is completely lined in timber (floors, walls, cabinetry and ceilings) to form an enclosure for living that its inhabitants become completely immersed within. The eye is then always drawn back to the outlook beyond.
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