Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org
21/03/2018.
[Chigny] Switzerland
metalocus, JORGE FERRER
metalocus, JORGE FERRER
The client requested a design which fostered the coexistence of shared and individual living spaces to provide an opportunity to live independently within a community of friends and their families.
Exterior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Adrien Comte and Mikael Blomfelt
Exterior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Exterior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Exterior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Exterior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Exterior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Interior view. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Photograph © Joël Tettamanti
Ground floor plan. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Second floor plan. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Third floor plan. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Roof plan. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Section. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Section. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Section. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Section. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Section. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Elevation. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Elevation. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Elevation. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
Elevation. Shared living spaces by dieterdietz.org. Courtesy of architects
In their construction principles, the houses designed by dieterdietz.org rely on a basic palette of materials, which accentuates their genetic similarities and differences. The press-house is fully refurbished while maintaining its original structure, walls and carpentry.
Description of project by dieterdietz.org
The intervention by dieterdietz.org immerses itself in an evocative context of a 200-year-old Chestnut tree and a very tall Sycamore in the midst of the vineyards of Chigny (Switzerland) that hide a cluster of carefully proportioned houses dating from the 19th century, which are perfectly integrated into the landscape.
The view opens towards the Lake of Geneva and the French Alps, with the impressive Mont Blanc blurring against the sky: a perfect setting for a very unique project. The client requested a design which fostered the coexistence of shared and individual living spaces to provide an opportunity to live independently within a community of friends and their families. In response to the brief, the refurbishment of one of the 19th century buildings, formerly a press-house, and the design of a new house were proposed.
The project follows the prevailing characteristics of this rural site, where solitary volumes in conglomerates provide space and shelter for everyday activities. By adding a house and following the typology of a barn, a further gravitational mass has been added to the interplay of volumes among the trees. The garden remains the locus of identity, where the refurbished Pressoir (press-house) and the new Grange (barn) articulate an interstitial court in the uninterrupted landscape. Chestnuts will fall close to a new roof, built entirely of nano-film coated solar-cells that provide energy for the new and the refurbished houses.
The layout of each house is structured around a generous-sized room that serves as a social hub for the people living in both houses. Thus, the two houses can be inhabited as one common place. Likewise, each house can be individually occupied, as both Grange and Pressoir are suited as work-and- living environments with a plan that plays on interstitial thresholds of voids, doors, curtains and sliding panels that gradually negotiate between public and private spheres.
In their construction principles, the houses rely on a basic palette of materials, which accentuates their genetic similarities and differences. The press-house is fully refurbished while maintaining its original structure, walls and carpentry. Now exposed and with visible signs of age, these structural elements tell the story of the building. New openings follow the proportions of existing ones, literally being drawn around the facades.
The exoskeleton of the Grange embodies a reverberation of the exposed roof truss of the Pressoir. In structural consequence, the logical order is reversed and primary exposed steel is completed by a timber secondary structure. In architect Dieter Dietz’ words:
“These houses offer a frame for living. Like a canvas drawn into space that awaits life to complete itself. Users will further define visual and spatial articulation.”
From the inside out, the two buildings orient themselves towards the Lemanic landscape, opening views onto the vineyards and the surrounding orchard. Over time, they will be fully shaded by trees and growing plants and flowers that climb between the roofs, and reflect the blossoming fusion between housing development and nature.
More information
Architects
dieterdietz.org, Zurich y Lausanne
Project architects
Dieter Dietz, Vincent Mermod, Manuel Potterat
Venue
Chemin de Vuideborse 1, 1034 Chigny, Switzerland
Client
Forel/Schrämli, Zurich
Collaborators
Civil engineer.- Schnetzer Puskas, Basel. Landscape architect.- dieterdietz.org
Dates
2017
Measures
Lot surface.- 1.910 m² Volume: 2.559 m³ Constructed surface: 701 m² Heated surface: 590 m² Solar roof: 250 m² Installation performance: 20.37 [kWp] Output/year: 15.200 [kWh] Volume skin ratio: A/EBF 2.21 Qh: 192 MJ/m²a Qww: 50 MJ/m²a
Dieter, dieterdietz.org
dieterdietz.org is a platform based in Lausanne and Zurich that engages in public space, architecture, media and urban design. The office structure is built around teams that are specifically formed according to the nature of each specific project. The platform is never hierarchized around people, but revolves around projects and collaborators. Ultimately, partners are always co-authors.
Architecture is conceived as a discipline with accentuated responsibility towards society and the environment: projects are always developed in open and holistic processes. This challenge is lived and shared with partners and clients as engaged members of contemporary societies. Projects at any scale benefit from the know-how of a professional architectural practice and its proximity to the research and teaching environment at EPFL.
Dieter is an architect based in Zurich and Lausanne, founder of dieterdietz.org and professor of architectural design at EPFL in Lausanne, where he directs the ALICE laboratory (Atelier de la conception de l’espace). The work conducted with ALICE and his practice has been awarded the Swiss Art Award, the London Festival of Architecture Main and Signpost Awards, and the Design Preis Schweiz. Exhibitions include contributions to the Venice Biennale of Architecture, the Saõ Paulo International Architecture Biennale, the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennale of Architecture, the Beijing Today Art Museum, and Dwell on Design in Los Angeles.
Architecture is conceived as a discipline with accentuated responsibility towards society and the environment: projects are always developed in open and holistic processes. This challenge is lived and shared with partners and clients as engaged members of contemporary societies. Projects at any scale benefit from the know-how of a professional architectural practice and its proximity to the research and teaching environment at EPFL.
Dieter is an architect based in Zurich and Lausanne, founder of dieterdietz.org and professor of architectural design at EPFL in Lausanne, where he directs the ALICE laboratory (Atelier de la conception de l’espace). The work conducted with ALICE and his practice has been awarded the Swiss Art Award, the London Festival of Architecture Main and Signpost Awards, and the Design Preis Schweiz. Exhibitions include contributions to the Venice Biennale of Architecture, the Saõ Paulo International Architecture Biennale, the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennale of Architecture, the Beijing Today Art Museum, and Dwell on Design in Los Angeles.
