Fritsch + Schlüter Architekten

Description

The exposed hillside site offers distant vistas across the Rhine River valley. The archetypal form of the gabled house was taken up thematically as a monolithic volume cantilevered over the edge of the slope in a careful equilibrium. Four large “notches” cut into the building’s corners stage a  

series of varied views. These continuous “cut-outs”, or soffits, structure the floor plans and create a flowing transition from outdoors to indoors. A charged tension can be felt between the generously dimensioned, extroverted glazed spaces and the introverted, closed rooms in the corner areas. There are also “gashes” made vertically through the building volume over the dining area and stairs, which form atriums with full roof glazing that connect the two storeys. The roof surfaces and exterior walls were uniformly clad in large diamond-shaped sheets of pre-oxidized copper using the traditional hanging technique; their burnished colour contrasts with the white surfaces within.