A dense and compact volume. Habitation Grimisuat by Anako Architecture

Description of the project by Anako Architecture

The newly built family home is in a recent residential neighborhood.

The sculptural and monolithic volume is like a rock, an eagle’s nest that overlooks the breathtaking panorama over the valley and the Alps along the left bank of the river Rhône. The mineral character of the house is accentuated by the faceted geometry of the volume as well as an envelope of exposed concrete.

In the upper part of the plot, a breach in the blind wall facing the road extends laterally to outline the car port and the entrance.

The monolithic appearance conceals a large patio in the center of the house, which provides plenty of light and offers views on the surrounding landscape. The dwelling features two levels. On the upper level, the entrance, the kitchen and the living room are interconnected and wrap freely around the vegetated patio. The inner courtyard invites the greenery and the blue of the sky in the heart of the home and acts as a transparent interface between the different spaces and levels.

On the lower level, the night area is echoing the gentle topography and greenery of the surroundings that propagates into the center of the building.

Like a blank canvas, crisp white interiors enhance the play of sunlight and shadow, vibrant green countryside and bright blue sky, which takes place throughout the day and across the year.

A gravel roof serves as a fifth façade that adopts a cut-out geometry punctuated by the courtyard. The concrete parapet of the patio is positioned to create a geometrical outline to precisely frame the mountain line.

Thermal slab on the lower level and smooth and glossy finished concrete slab on the upper level create uniformity enhanced by crisp white walls and ceilings.

The roof and the exterior walls of the building are in concrete, insulated and the inside walls rendered with white smoothed plaster. As the building does not have any right angle, the use of single size 50/200 cm formwork panels adds a strictness to the volume.