An apartment building will be built near Reden Park, whose appearance is to refer to the interwar villas standing nearby. It will be an intimate residential building with only eight units. As Maciej Franta says about the project - it has been adapted to the specific shape of the plot.
Maciej Franta of FRANTA GROUP Architekt Maciej Franta talks about the studio's latest project. An elegant residential building will stand in Reden Park.
Basia Hyjek: What was the main inspiration for this project?
Maciej Franta: The task set before us by the investor was the realization of a multi-family residential building with a high standard of apartments and interesting architecture. After arriving at the plot, we recognized that the site undoubtedly has a lot of scenic qualities and a very interesting neighborhood, actually from all sides. The shape of the plot itself is very irregular, it has a large slope of land and is relatively small. In the first approach to the concept, we tried to fit a simple building into this peculiar shape, which did not bring the desired results - the barrier of the irregular geometry of the borders resulted in either too small a building area or exceeding the permissible distances from the borders required by law.
We came up with the idea that instead of "fighting" these irregularities and trying to adapt the surroundings to the designed building, we should reverse our thinking and adapt the shape of the building to the existing restrictions and the shape of the plot of land
© Franta Group
At some point we came up with the idea that instead of "fighting" these irregularities and trying to adapt the surroundings to the designed building, we should reverse our thinking and adapt the shape of the building to the found limitations and the shape of the plot. Already after the first sketches it turned out that we got a beautiful irregular volume using even to excess the small area of the plot. We additionally recognized that these irregularities are formed by corners with acute and obtuse angles, so if we rounded them we would get organic shapes - referring to the shapes of the crowns of trees. The corners themselves are fantastically suitable for viewing terraces for apartments. In this way we found the answer to how to take advantage of this interesting and beautiful context of the surroundings.
The final step was to fit apartments inside this block (usually this is where design begins) and to add a patio to light the common empty first floor. Instead of building it up with apartments, we used it for a common space for residents. Thus, it can be considered that the main inspiration was the "inversion of thinking" from the typical design approach and the charm of the site's context. Because of its location and elegance, we named the building after the patron saint of the hill on which it stands.
On each floor we got 4 apartments, but each with a different layout of rooms
© Franta Group
Basia: What were the investor's requirements and needs?
Maciej: The investor is an ambitious person and undoubtedly fascinated by interesting architecture. From the beginning, we considered his expectations to be very positive, as the priority was not the size of the PUM, but the desire to realize an optimal and interesting investment, which will also please him, and not only bring profits. Such a situation does not often happen in the professional life of an architect, so we decided to take advantage of it and help him realize this plan!
Basia: What is the functional layout of the apartments?
Maciej: We solved the apartments rather traditionally, but also in an interesting way - we decided that the simple layout of the rooms fills the mass well, and in addition, it is also a certain counterbalance to the varied mass of the building. On each floor we got 4 apartments, but each with a different layout of rooms. It is also interesting that all rooms have an exit to the terrace, as it surrounds the building on all sides.
We additionally recognized that these irregularities are formed by corners with acute and obtuse angles, so if we round them we get organic shapes - referring to the shapes of the crowns of trees
© Franta Group
Basia: What was the most challenging part of the design process? What are you particularly satisfied with?
Maciej: The building is a combination of two technologies. A huge challenge was the construction of the balconies, which, unlike some of the apartments, were not implemented using the traditional method, but in a steel structure. In addition, the arches, which had to be perfectly profiled, caused us anxiety, but working together with the investor, detailed and precise selection of details and technology, gave a better result than we expected. The building has found its context perfectly and opens up 100% to the beautiful surroundings. We are also pleased that the rounded balconies correspond very well with the interwar villa buildings that stand in the immediate vicinity. The tremendous interest of customers eager to buy the apartment also pleases us immensely, as both the aesthetic and business effects have been achieved.
