Location | Ermensee LU |
Client | Privat |
Planning | 2004–2005 |
Construction | 2005–2006 |
Architects | Steiger & Kraushaar Architekten with Graber & Steiger Architekten |
Project architect | Roger Kraushaar, Steiger & Kraushaar Architekten |
Photographer | F. Simonetti |
The site for the prospective single-family house is located in a privileged situation on the northeast head of a moraine hill arising from the plain of the Lucerne Seetal. The mood of the location is determined by an existing single-family house in modernist style situated on a south-facing slope of the hill planted with vines, as well as a group of old trees; the view is largely restricted to the north, east and west. The ambiguous situation in which the side with the view is not orientated towards the sunny aspect led to the creation of a courtyard-like building volume that appears to be clinging to the moraine hill. Whereas the two-storey view-orientated façade emerging from the slope is generously designed, a wind-protected courtyard that serves as an extension to the living spaces and provides it with light is situated towards the south. This typology makes it possible to construct a southern building on a north-facing slope. The vertical formwork in mahogany-brown acrylic resin boards and the multiply kinked copper roof refer to the building structure, which is primarily a wooden post construction. The materials refer to the local rural atmosphere and exude a homely intimacy. Large, dormer-like windows that frame the view and the encircling glazing to the inner courtyard open up the building at specific points and evoke a spatial aura dovetailed with the surrounding environment.
The current issue 13/2022 of TEC21 introduces the mixed-use conversion on Denkmalstrasse in Lucerne. Among others, the report highlights how the specific concept of the building achieves a lofty spatial openness despite a highly dense urban context and how the simple and raw spaces invite to a playful appropriation for living and working. Minimalism as an offer!