Podkowa Leśna, a garden city, is only 25 kilometers from Warsaw. There, amid picturesque greenery, Agata Karczewska and Aleksandra Adamska, architects from the Libido studio, designed a minimalist garden house.
The existing old-growth forest determined the shape of the house's development. The designers decided to adopt the principle of opening the body of the building only in internal directions or towards the garden, and leaving full walls facing the street and the neighboring plot. The dismemberment of the building and the opening of its individual parts allowed for privacy despite extensive glazing.
functional scheme
© Libido Architects
Ola Kloc: On visualizations the house looks as if it is sunk in the heart of a dense forest, how does the plot look in reality?
Agata Karczewska: The plot is located in Podkowa Leśna - a garden city, a unique urban establishment. Large clusters of old-growth forest have been preserved in Podkowa Leśna, thanks to which many animal and plant species live here. Practically the entire plot is very densely wooded with mixed forest. Due to the unique nature of the city, the landscape of Podkowa Leśna is protected in terms of the existing stand of trees, as well as landforms, fauna and flora and much more.
visualization, color version A
© Libido Architects
Ola: What was the priority for the investors?
Agata: We came across very conscious Investors. The greatest value for them was certainly the plot of land and its natural character. At the same time, they wanted an interesting and functional house that would allow them to enjoy the qualities of the surroundings from practically anywhere, but with privacy. Hence a lot of glazing open to the inside, connected terraces and this disjointed character of the building. Design-wise, we tried to blur the line between inside and outside.
Ola: The disjointed body of the house gives way to existing trees. Was leaving them on the plot more of a problem or a challenge?
Agata: When designing the building we were like intruders in the natural surroundings. We had to completely adapt the shape of the building to the existing stand of trees. This was obviously no small challenge, with such a densely wooded plot, but I am of the opinion that it is more interesting to design in a difficult context. It requires going beyond the comfort zone of the architect, more design gymnastics, reaching for non-standard treatments in the search for a solution to this puzzle. Difficult and non-standard plots arouse the greatest excitement in us, because working on them triggers strong emotions, a creative dialogue between the designer, the Investor and the problem at hand. Usually the final effect is surprising and not entirely predictable. As in everyday life, so in design, problem = challenge, and challenge = development.
Ola: Thank you for the interview!
