The project involves the transformation of an apartment occupying the rural part of an 18th-century farmhouse.
Fribourg farmhouses of that era housed both living quarters and farm functions under one roof. The rural section consisted of two stables flanking a central passageway — the fourragère — a through-space used for feeding livestock, which also benefited from additional height allowing hay to be stored above the stables.

The apartment, fitted out in 2011 by previous owners, resulted from a renovation that significantly altered the rural volume’s substance and nature. The original ceiling joists were replaced with a concrete slab, the wooden structure was substituted with masonry walls, and the roof framework removed in favour of glulam beams.

La entrada La Cretâ Farmhouse se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

At the entrance to Endingen, the little river Surb forms a small landscape chamber between the hills that draw together in the valley. Inside this idyllic setting, one hardly notices the surrounding bustle of single-family homes and residential streets. Instead, it feels as though one were in a natural landscape: birds are singing, trees cast their shadows, and behind you rises a sun-warmed rock face.

Alongside the natural rock formation on the northern side, the river, and the mill canal, several buildings protected as cantonal monuments define the area. Together they form an ensemble that is listed in the national inventory of heritage sites of importance. With its elongated overall form, the project continues the structure of this ensemble and extends the existing built fabric. Toward the rock face, the articulation of the volume gives it the flexibility to follow the natural line of the ground and to create a series of spatial sequences full of tension and rhythm.

To integrate optimally into the complementary surroundings of the sunny south and rocky north, the main living spaces extend transversely through the building volume. Their dual orientation allows the entire landscape chamber to be experienced. The continuous living space is offset in such a way that two interlocking living areas are created.

Text provided by the architects.

La entrada Mühleweg housing se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

An alternative to “single-family homes» – communal living at Lindenhof. A fire destroyed the existing building down to its foundations. Our task was now to plan a new building that would restore the volumetry and appearance of the historic barn. However, as the farm is no longer used for agricultural purposes, but the ensemble is a listed building, the new replacement building was to be – if you like – a rebuilt version of the old barn. Rental apartments are being built that combine the qualities of single-family homes with those of communal living – and are affordable for families or flat-sharing communities without high incomes. (Rental price of Sfr. 2’100.- for 5.5 rooms on 165m²)

Communal living develops around a shared courtyard, which is also home to the existing, historic residential building and the coach house used by the residents for a variety of purposes. The exterior spaces of the apartments and the apartment entrances are all oriented towards the shared courtyard, in the center of which the historic fountain will be rebuilt. The path to the apartments always leads across the courtyard – there is no direct access to the apartment from the parking garage. The history of the burnt-down building is well documented: A high-quality and atypical timber-framed stable and farm building, probably built in 1829 by Georg Schadegg, was dismantled in 1947 down to the brick-built ground floor, parts of the internal structure and the two threshing floor passages and was extended with a new, then modern barn structure.

La entrada Lindenhof Multi-Family Wooden House se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

The area encompassing the Bogenacker and Tannenbühl sites previously consisted of two primary school buildings and several small structures surrounding an undefined central space. By reoccupying this central area, the new Dürnten school campus succeeds in uniting the school grounds, three kindergartens, and ten regular classes across three sites into a single entity. The central school building is newly constructed as a contemporary schoolhouse with three “naves.” The access area — the center and “service nave” — features a spacious entrance hall and a grand staircase, built in exposed concrete. The two laterally arranged “side naves,” constructed using sustainable timber elements, form the flexible layer of functional spaces that house the classrooms. Continuous timber elements frame the rooms and provide a calm, cohesive appearance.
The three-part structure is unified by a weathered timber facade and a projecting, continuous metal escape balcony.
The school building is designed to be expandable in the future, thereby addressing sustainability and flexibility requirements.

Text provided by the architects.

La entrada School Bota se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

Three years ago, the vision arose to realize a pavilion using Oxara’s low-CO₂, cement-free binders and admixtures – a pioneering project conceived as a beacon for sustainable construction. The project presented numerous challenges, but through collaboration with leading industry players and research institutions, it was finally realized. Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) agreed to host the pavilion for two years on its Horw campus, integrate it as a case study into the “Think Earth” research project, and gain valuable research data through measurements on the cast earth walls. At the same time, the structure serves as a practical example for interdisciplinary teaching projects and student design work.

Architecturally, the Manal Pavilion follows a clear material logic. The walls and columns combine the properties of rammed earth and concrete, with processing presenting its own unique challenges. The materials do not set but dry, which causes significant shrinkage and already required a precise strategy for dealing with tolerances during the design process. Planning was carried out by a transdisciplinary team that jointly developed architectural, structural, and material-technical issues. The resulting structure optimally utilizes the specific properties of the building materials used. The pavilion is based on a three-axis supporting structure, assembled from reused concrete slabs from a converted tunnel. The foundations and load-bearing walls consist of Oulesse Concrete, while the facades were filled with Nossim Cast Earth. The vaulted arches, which extend along the axes, are built from Oxabloc Earth Blocks and supplemented by steel tension rods that short-circuit the arch thrust. A wooden ring beam encloses the entire construction, while the roof slab is connected to the bracing walls by vertical steel cross-bracing. The construction shows that the materials developed by Oxara, in combination with other sustainable building materials, can achieve high performance, and the use of CO₂-intensive building materials can be almost completely avoided.·

La entrada MANAL Pavilion se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

In Wangen (SZ) a heritage-listed wooden farmhouse, over 200 years old, has been revitalized. This largely preserved house underwent renovations in close consultation with the heritage protection authority and has been transformed into a contemporary single- family residence.

JJAdM architects adressed the challenge of how to honor the historic structure while meeting modern requirements, through drawing inspiration from its original design for all their interventions. In the main house, they established a new circulation path connecting the ground floor to the top floor making use of only traditional building techniques. This new spatial design rises vertically above the kitchen, reinterpreting the original smoke kitchen concept. The exterior appearance has been preserved, with only age-related damages repaired, and the existing strickbauweise on the facade renewed. The old, unstable extension, has been replaced with a timber frame construction that mirrors the original form, thereby adding new living space to the historic layout of the house.

Nearly the entire spatial structure has been maintained, allowing us to create a surprisingly innovative environment for future generations.

Text provided by the architects.

La entrada Historic farmhouse knitted further se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

Ferdinand Hodler painted mountains reflected in Swiss lakes, again and again. He was obsessed with this double-inverted landscape, constantly evolving with the changing sky and the movement created by the wind blowing on the water’s surface. In 1867, aged 14, he painted his first lakes and sold them to passing tourists. In 1918, fifty years later, he died in Geneva, leaving behind a few unfinished sketches of Mont-Blanc reflected in Lake Geneva, as seen from his apartment balcony.

Villa Montasser sits beside the beautiful Lake Geneva, looking out at the Alps. As a reaction to the majestic landscape, the building tries to stay as simple and humble as possible. The long, plain façade is a blank canvas reflecting into a water basin of the same length. A singular long window opens onto a floating terrace, again of similar dimensions.

La entrada Villa M se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

The Hofacker school grounds, in the Hirslanden district of Zurich, consist of the school building with a gymnasium by Friedrich Wehrli, built in 1898, and a second gymnasium wing from 1938, by city architect Hermann Herter.

These two existing school buildings stand like large and heavy cubes in the center of the plot, maintaining an appropriate distance to the residential buildings that surround them. Despite their architectural quality, for which the buildings have been listed and protected, the site could not fulfill the needs of a modern educational facility, and the buildings needed renovation. The school should also contain more public functions for the neighborhood in the future. In between the two protected buildings, a two-story new construction is inserted.

Text provided by the architects.

La entrada School Building Hofacker se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

As a residential quarter for the Kleinbasel workers, the Matthäusquartier was built in little more than a decade. Between 1890 and 1900, a district characterized by uniform perimeter block buildings was created within a short time. As in many backyards, a small commercial enterprise was located directly behind the residential building. The two-storey workshop has already undergone some changes over time and is now being extended to create additional living space under the roof. While retaining the ridge and eaves lines, the roof is folded open in the middle to get both more height and a new window strip. The existing materials are adapted and reused. The roof beams, the floorboards and the half-timbering remain part of the changed house and accompany it in a new guise into the next phase of life.

La entrada Haus im Hof ​​Kleinbasel se publicó primero en Global Spaces.

The house for a young family of five is situated on a steep plot and consists of two volumes on slightly different levels, connected by a ramp. The construction is designed for barrier-free movement, with all rooms accessible by wheelchair.

A Home for a Young Family

The lower, square area houses the open and freely usable living area with a terrace and the entrance. The elongated upper area contains the bathrooms, the technical core, and all the bedrooms. This zone can be flexibly adapted in the future, as no partition walls are structural. Instead of a garage and basement, a third, multi-purpose volume is constructed, which forms an ensemble together with the main house. The resulting indoor and outdoor spaces frame the views into the surrounding landscape: gentle hills, the cable car at the end of the valley, the meadows with fruit trees and the forest.

Guests on the Meadow

The house is constructed from prefabricated wooden elements and supported by steel screw foundations. It hovers above the meadow to minimize disturbance to its natural life. Water continues to seep through the entire plot, and plants and animals find their habitat under and around the house. At the end of its lifespan, the structure can be removed from the meadow without leaving any traces. This construction method saves approximately 30% of greenhouse gas emissions compared to conventionally founded wooden houses. Not only in the ground, but throughout the entire building, the use of concrete is completely avoided.

La entrada Green Meadow House se publicó primero en Global Spaces.