This residential building is located on the southern outskirts of Landshut, Bavaria.  It is surrounded by housing developments most of which were built in the 1970's. House N occupies the southern most of the three plots which became available with the demolition of an old farmstead in 2005.   House N is a reinterpretation of the typology of the ... read more

This residential building is located on the southern outskirts of Landshut, Bavaria.  It is surrounded by housing developments most of which were built in the 1970's. House N occupies the southern most of the three plots which became available with the demolition of an old farmstead in 2005.   House N is a reinterpretation of the typology of the historic farmhouses ubiquitous in the lower parts of Bavaria.  A typical farmhouse of this region is two stories high; the lower level is of masonry structure with smooth stucco finish and the upper level of exposed timber.     With this typology of reduced to the essentials, the choice of materials enable the articulation of the concept.     Solid masonry structure of the ground level is articulated as a plinth for the upper level.  The upper level shares the materiality with the roof emphasizing these together as a single compact element.  With the selection of materials, we wanted to emphasize the natural character of the building with dynamics in color manifested in the process of aging. We were also selective in this process to allow the construction to be easily handled by local craftsmen and to avoid the need for constant maintenance.     From Tecu® Oxid, we were able to find the material that satisfied all our required qualities.    The configuration of the building articulates its functions clearly. The ground floor with an open floor plan and large windows accommodates the social and more general needs of a single family home.  The kitchen, dining room, living room and the office are located on this level.  These functions face south and have full height windows for a visual connection to the outside and to allow maximum amount of natural light to penetrate.  The openings on the northern façade for the ancillary functions are reduced to a minimum.     The private quarters such as the children’s room, bedroom and the library are located on the upper level.  A feeling of safety and security is conveyed in the appearance of the upper portion of the house.  As a seemingly independent compact unit, the materiality of copper expresses simultaneously warmth and security.  The interior spaces are generous and bright with natural light from the consistently dimensioned windows.  The orientations of these rooms also correspond to their functions; the bedrooms face south and the secondary functions such as the bathroom and dressing rooms face north.     The simplicity of design pervades in the design of the façade and clear layout of space.  This simplicity with reduced materiality pervades throughout; in the exterior, a choice of two distinct materials of smooth stucco and copper and in the interior the simplicity of color palette of white walls and oak flooring and doors.       This project satisfies the highest thermal requirement of building envelope that meets the standards of the passive housing.  
The gas heating system is supplemented with a solar thermal system.  Alternatively, the entire house can be heated with the traditional cockle stove which is connected to an integrated heat exchanger. collapse