Tucked Into A Cliffside, A Swiss Winery Preserves The Landscape—And Wows Guests
April 5, 2013
This project won the 2013 Architizer A+ Jury Award in the bars & nightlife category. See the full list of winners here.
Building a contemporary winery in a UNESCO-protect landscape isn’t easy. The Lavaux Vinyard Terraces have stretched along the southern shores of Lake Geneva since monks started the precarious plantings centuries ago. Yet Swiss atelier Fournier-Maccagan took up the challenge of designing a modern space dedicated to tasting and displaying wines grown on the surrounding terraces, without disturbing the valuable planting surfaces.
With nowhere left to build but directly into the rock, the architects devised a stunning contemporary facade on the cliff-face to announce the winery’s presence among the farmed terraces. The facade of ‘VINORAMA’ is covered by a sculptural steel rain-screen, designed by Swiss artist Daniel Schleapfer. It’s pixelated surface depicts grapevines, which impart a pleasant dappled light to the interior tasting rooms. Read more!
