The whole world, as well as architects, are looking for harmony between man and nature. Architect Zdeněk Fránek designed a house on a mountainside, away from civilization, with an amazing view of the Giant Mountains. How to maintain balance, to inscribe the house in the landscape and not dominate it?
mountain solitude
Architect Zdeněk Fránek of the Czech studio Fránek Architects took on the task of designing a house for friends. In a remote location, a house of more than 300 meters was to stand on a steep slope. How to design a building close to nature and not dominate the landscape? The architect replaced in the landscape the site of a mountain solitude, the remains of which had stood there for a very long time. The form and appearance were inspired by the demolished wooden hut. The investors expected a special approach to the space from the architect - it was to be clear and simple. And, above all, in harmony with nature.
My experience with houses with a clean, simple form is that they are often chosen by strong personalities who have their own ideas about themselves, their place in the world and the values represented by their family. The exterior facade of such houses is characterized by artistic beauty, the ability to age and immerse in greenery. It expresses a kind of harmony with the universe," says architect and designer of this unusual house Zdeněk Fránek.
photo by Petr Polák | Fránek Architects
inscribed into the slope
The house has been inscribed into the slope of the hillside so that it appears to have two stories on one side and three on the other. On the garden side, the lowest floor - on the southwest side - opens onto a terrace. Meanwhile, the main entrance is on the northeast side of the building. On the entrance level is the main living area with a kitchen, and a bedroom with a bathroom and a study. Entrance to the building is also possible in the basement from the southwest side. In the basement there are the remaining 3 bedrooms with sanitary facilities, a laundry room and a utility room. In the attic there is a library and a meditation room. The floors are connected by a spiral staircase.
photo by Petr Polák | Fránek Architects
materials
The building is traditionally masonry, but the whole building has been lined with larch slats. The windows are also made of larch, frameless with glued glass on the outside.
In the design of Fránek Architects, wood is precisely the leitmotif - it covers both the facades and the roof, as well as the terrace, creating the house as a monolithic block, integrated with the landscape. The form made of natural material fits into the hillside.
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photo by Petr Polák | Fránek Architects
zero-energy
In the near future, the building will be complemented by a second, small building. A greenhouse and storage facility for fresh vegetables, it will contain technical equipment for a "zero-energy" home heating solution. Among other things, there will be photovoltaic panels on the greenhouse roof. The house has as much as 376 square meters of floor space, so it is important that it be economical to use.
This house is a kind of tribute to the architectural purity and spectacular nature of the mountainous surroundings of the Giant Mountains.
For the architect, as he explains on the website, the concept of a house in the Giant Mountains carries an almost spiritual dimension. The view of the mountains and the fact of how the investors value them forced an extremely ascetic implementation formula.
Photo by Petr Polák | Fránek Architects
interior
The interior of the house serves as a backdrop for the artworks that its residents collect. In addition, thanks to the minimalism that has been preserved, nothing distracts from the views that unfold outside the windows. The interioris white and clean. Even the floors are bright and reflect light. The furniture is wooden, merging with the rest of the house, and all floors are connected by a wooden winding staircase, which is the only thing that cuts off the simple, ascetic rooms. Huge windows, which are located along the entire length of the house, not only open the house to the view of the Giant Mountains, but allow the atmosphere of the mountains to penetrate inside. They introduce a very large amount of natural light into the rooms. It's thanks to it that the austere rooms seem softer.
