Location: Minusio, Switzerland
Year: 2011
Architect: Silvia Gmür
Model scale: 1:50
The objective in this project was to examine the fundamental questions of architecture, not to respond to specific requirements. “Il progetto, prima che strumento di trasformazione, è strumento di conoscenza” [“The project is more a tool for collecting knowledge than a tool for change”] (Luigi Snozzi). That said, each project also changes its authors.
The questions we asked included: What are the relevant characteristics of a house? How is the relationship between public and private expressed? How does the house connect to the ground? How does it fit into the landscape? How is the structure linked to the hill (i.e. in the absence of horizontal or vertical support)?
The home is above all a means of physical and psychological protection in that it separates an area used by individuals from the outside world. The transitions from private to public space illustrate the relationship between individuals and society. To this extent, they promote integration.
The house is a graft on the surface of the earth: it is not a symbiosis between the building and the built-up area but it is always an artefact in dialogue with nature. The character of this dialogue is crucial for the design of the house.
The triangular property on which Casa ai Pozzi is located is part of a steep slope at an angle to the street. We used a hillside ledge on which to house the house. Separating, that is to say freeing, the house from this slope allowed us on the one hand to select the same architectural order on all sides of the building, on the other hand to create a contrast between the “facades” of the house and the topography, which itself turns into a “landscape facade”. This contrast produces a more powerful effect than what would have been obtained by integrating the house into the land. The structure is independent; the landscape context becomes an integral part of its interior.
Together, the two housing units of equal size form a whole. Their mirrored arrangement expresses duality and complementarity? balance in asymmetry.
The few elements of the house form its structure or its envelope. They are made of concrete so that the design elements (such as handrails, kitchen and wetland) are subordinate to the structure as a whole.
Two substantial concrete supports and three identical concrete slabs form the structure and define the space. The rectangular floor plan (12 x 24 m) is divided inside and outside, each with one of the two supports. It also serves to emphasize unity.
The glass facade only serves as thermal protection; it opens onto the landscape rather than enclosing the house. The translucent curtains define the views of the landscape that flow into the house. They transform space? floating in the landscape, apparently detached from the ground? in an intimate space that provides protection.
Mathematics and proportions define the form of structure and space. The sparse range of materials used retains its archaic expression.
The water flowing through the property and down into the valley was captured and channeled into two pools that reflected the light.
Text from author
