Maiden Tower is an expansion of House Marte. Made in concrete, with a raw presence in a wonderful natural surrounding. We recomend you to read the memory of the project, quite poetic but really amusing, as well as seeing the pool photographs.
Located in an amazing surroundings this house, like a tower, is presented as a big concrete piece, with a massive outside appearance while within it it seems light and simply. Big windows provide of light to the inner rooms and reflect the landscape. A beautiful pool completes the space between both buildings.
 

Memory of project

What could match the massive presence of Marte‘s concrete home, this raw, stony material, this self-contained unit? Oxidizing steel: just as raw, just as authentic in its expression and its properties. The interior impression remains the same – wood surfaces, warm colors, fine pores. The new exterior structure, on the other hand, is masculine, striving skywards, rising up from the surrounding landscape like the neighboring pear tree. That behind the massive exterior lies a building of lightweight materials may be inspired by the tale of the Trojan horse. A new space opens up between the two buildings, complemented by an in-ground pool – uncompromising, hardless sensible, but therefore all the more magical, idiosyncratic, and sensuous. Oxidizing steel on the walls and bottom, encased like in a suit of armor.

The tower also appears this way with its steel ventilation flaps to the north and south and fixed glazing to the east. Rapunzel, Rapunzel…. Through the library, down a few steps into the separate kitchen, and then through the dining room, facing the pool, the little princesses can climb the newel stairs to their bedrooms. There, they are presented with a view, on the one hand, of their parents’ protective house and, on the other, the nearby scenic forest. The spatial perspective mirrors this interplay of freedom and guidance, becoming a symbol of their possibilities for development within the family.

The whole structure seems so sealed off, but in terms of use, it not only offers an astonishing amount of free space, but also conveys respect and draws boundaries. This makes it possible to live together in a relatively small space and at the same time provides each person with opportunities for participation and private space. What an unparalleled atmosphere for the girls. If it is true that the first few years of life shape our future spatial desires, then these girls will have had a very valuable personal experience that their future Prince Charmings will probably not have had: a life in manifest appreciation.

Text.- Marina Hämmerle

 

CREDITS.-

Architect.- Marte Marte Architects.
Collaborators.- M+G Ingenieure, Josef Galhr, 6800 Feldkirch (structural consultant), 3P Geotechnik, 6900 Bregenz (ground engineering).
Design.- 2007-2011
Construction.- 2011-2012
Floor area.- 109m2

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Bernhard Marte 1966 Born in Dornbirn, Austria. 1980 – 1985 Rankweil Technical College, mentored by Erich Steinmayr. 1985 – 1992 Studied Architecture at the University of Innsbruck, Design training under Rainer Köberl, Completed his studies under Othmar Barth. As of 2005 Advisory Council for Design, Rankweil. Member of the Board of the Vorarlberg Central Association of Architects.

Stefan Marte 1967 born in Dornbirn, Austria. 1982 – 1987 Rankweil Technical College, mentored by Erich Steinmayr. 1987 – 1995 Studied Architecture at the University of Innsbruck, Design training under Rainer Köberl. 1999 – 2005 Member of the Board of the Vorarlberg Central Association of Architects. 2004 Member of the Board of vai, Vorarlberg Architecture Institute. As of 2005 President of vai.

They grew up in Weiler and at construction sites. Marte.Marte opened their joint architecture office in their childhood home in Weiler in 1993. They have contributed to a number of publications and exhibitions such as "emerging architecture 01" and sat on various European competition juries. They have also won a number of awards such as the Austrian State Award for Industrial and Commercial Architecture.

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Published on: November 13, 2013
Cite: "Maiden Tower" METALOCUS. Accessed
<https://www.metalocus.es/en/news/maiden-tower> ISSN 1139-6415
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