Private Residence in Pirogovo_Russia
Finalist project of Price
"The Gold Medal for Italian Architecture 2015"
The residence is located within the Golf Club Pirogovo of Moscow in a natural setting consisting of forests and river basins. The L-shaped plan is elevated on metal columns to allow it to be set among existing trees within the narrow, elongated lot and at the same time to provide a 360° view of the garden and the golf course.
The relationship with the natural grounds is achieved through the large covered terrace that allows to stay outdoor protected by high summer temperatures as well as sheltered by the first winter snowfalls. At the same time the glass sunroom designed as an intangible shell acts as a controlled micro-climate for all seasons.
The most evident supports of the suspended volumes are the diagonal staircase and the volume which houses the thermal plant.
All residential spaces have been elevated from the ground, in order to gain a panoramic view while simultaneously keeping the privacy from the golf course.
The facades are oriented to maximize daylight exposure and natural ventilation; extensively glazed living-dining areas face South-West, while the bedrooms present less exposed fronts, carved by an intentional rhythm of openings toward east.
The metal structural columns have deliberately different diameters and, comparable to trees, are asymmetrically located, so that, together with the "flaky" texture of the zinc surface, they could blend with the trunks of birch trees all around.
The superstructure of the building is entirely made of X-LAM type, solid wood cross-laminated panels, with components shaped by a laser cutter directly from 3D CAD files using CNC routers.
The careful engineering of all architectural and systems components has produced a completely prefabricated building that was factory-assembled, disassembled, transported and reassembled on site, where it was laid on top of the site substructure and connected to the site utilities.
The bathrooms are prefabricated cells, equipped with Hot & Cold fittings, so they can be inserted into the building without further processing.
The foundations are made of site-cast concrete piers, footings and edge beams.
The materials used for the exterior finishes Nordic vernacular: facade and terraces are cladded with iroko planking, painted anthracite color or left natural, to get greater durability to the humid climate of the forest, while the roofing is made of burnt zinc-titanium sheets.
The aspects of sustainability have been addressed either through design choices (building orientation and fenestration) or through the use of wood as construction material, renewable resource by nature, as well as, a thermally insulating material with a limited carbon footprint.
In combination with this, was the choice of a geothermal system with a high-efficiency heat pump, radiant panels and fan coils.
Not only, prefabrication has not limited the architectural design but in reality made its complexity possible by allowing a tight control of quality, time and costs, as well as, transforming the construction process himself into a spectacular adventure.
Technical data
-Design by: Umberto Zanetti
-Collaborators: Ing. Marco Stazzonelli, arch. Maria Fantoni, arch. Stefano Cerri, arch. Francesca Mirarchi
-Bulding firm: WoodBeton Nulli Group SpA - Iseo (BS) - Italy
-Furniture: Essequattro SpA - Grisignano di Zocco (VI) - Italy
-Lighting Design: Kreon - Opglabbeek-Belgium
-Completion date: 2014
