On a plot with a picturesque, panoramic view of the mountains of the Silesian Beskid, architects from the kropka studio designed a modern house for a family of five.
The body of the two-story, single-family house presents itself quite differently from each side - from the southwest only its upper floor is visible, while on the opposite side one can see both the first floor clad with concrete prefabricated panels and the upstairs finished with dark sheet metal.
cross section
© dot studio
The architects located the children's rooms and the garage in the lower floor, which sits below the surrounding terrain on three sides. The upper floor, in turn, houses the living area and the master bedroom with a bathroom and dressing room.
The division into various functions is emphasized in the body of the building itself by cutting it with a glazed connector housing the staircase. Through this solution, the architects ensured that the residents of the house have adequate privacy in the night zone. The adopted functional-spatialsolutions allowed the creation of direct entrances to the house on both floors, thus giving the opportunity to create independent, comfortable living places for a multi-generational family.
Photo: Maciej Lulko © kropka studio
Ola Kloc: What was the priority for investors?
Jakub Kowalczyk: The investors wanted to create a simple, modern house, which in the long term will provide comfort and privacy for all residents - it was important to create a "children's" floor. The relatively broad program had to be combined with the wish that the architecture remain modest, not dominating the scenic plot.
Ola: The issue of the difference in terrain on the plot was solved in an interesting way, what problems did you face when designing such a solution?
Jakub: The existing slope on the plot provided an excuse to look for less standard functional-spatialsolutions, which, combined with one of the investor's guidelines to create an "independent children's zone", resulted in the idea to create a house that actually consists of two smaller - one-story houses. On the technical side, it was important to properly insulate the buried parts - made as a "heavy type" - and to have proper drainage. Previously, we encountered a similar issue when designing the Half-Floor House, the program of which, comprising three levels, was laid out in such a way that from each level it is possible to access the surrounding area - in fact, it can be called half-floor.
Ola: The facade is clad in dark sheet metal, what made you decide to choose such a material?
Jakub: The investor and we wanted a "maintenance-free" material, one that would perform well in mountainous conditions, and at the same time be suitable to cover both the roof and the facade with it, creating a unified body.
Ola: Thank you for the interview!
