The residential house at the Millstätter See is a
brick basement turn-of-the-century wooden house. Its construction date is
estimated to be between 1900 and 1910. The construction assignment was to
refurbish the perennially occupied house and to convert it into a modern summer
house. The greatest emphasis was placed on keeping the original external
appearance while adapting the internal space to make it contemporary and
equipping it with the newest technology.
Hence, the first steps in the process were to
dismantle the building to those elements that wanted to be preserved and then
to refurbish these to state-of-the-art standards. In accordance, the basement
which is partially interpolated into the properties hillside, was dehumidified
and newly insulated as it had been severely damaged high pore-water pressure of
the bounding soil. During these works the fascinating stone masonry of the
cellar walls was revealed. Hydrophobisation allowed these walls to remain open
and visible. Two new terraces were annexed to the basement. These had the
twofold effect that the house was complemented with an east and a west facing
premium outdoor space as well a creating space for the utilities management. As
a cue to the second construction project on the property, the boathouse, these
two new structural elements were mantled with copper expanded metal.
In the interior of the building the entire insulation
was removed to maximise space and allow for a generous room layout. The now
visible solid wool walls were sandblasted and caulked with lambs’ wool. Due to
their advanced age of over 100 years they exhibited damaged linking elements,
these were repaired with matured timber. To allow for the installation of floor
heating and the concomitant extra weight of the screed tiles required for this,
the ceiling was reinforced. In order to preserve the original impression of the
house the dilapidated windows and doors were exchanged for new replicas.
The interior finishing is distinguished by its
consistent interplay between old and new structural elements: the floors, the
interior staircase as well as various carpentry elements are made from dark oak
which in colour and haptic is a strong contrast to the bright larch; however it
leaves a harmonic overall impression.
The composition means, the reciprocity between novel
and aged was adhered to even in the décor; the lighting elements are adorned
with stucco reliefs while the sanitary miscellanea evoke memories of times long
gone, only the newly tiled cockle stoves actually date back to approximately
the construction time of the house.
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