House on a Hillside
Oberhusrain in Kriens winds its way in serpentines up the steep Sonnenberg. On the development a green gap is visible where sheep graze around a walnut tree. This plot was the first in Oberhusrain to be sold, but was never developed. The owner family is now having a two-family house built there on the sloping site.
The road to Oberhusrain announces the complex architectural requirements of the plot and its surroundings. At the same time, this starting point creates moments in the project in response to the hillside location. The structure of the building divides the plot, creating two differing sides. At the front of the house, the southern slope offers breath-taking sunshine and a view of Mount Pilatus. A spacious terrace invites you to linger. From the back of the house you can see the steep slope from a secluded garden seating area.
The spacious entrance area allows the topography of Oberhusrain to be experienced spatially: access is via a floor-to-ceiling outside staircase, and the entrance area runs through the building, providing a clear view of the garden on the mountain side. These vistas also bring the interior to life.
Above the entrance, the two homes share a small exit that brings classic images to life: waving to welcome people or to say goodbye.
Both houses extend over three floors, emphasising the qualities of each with their individual characteristics. On every floor there are moments of distance and intimacy.
The entrance floor is classically laid out with a spacious entrance, two rooms and a bathroom. The entrance, along with the cloakroom, is lined with wood, making it a piece of built-in furniture, an element that is also found on other floors.
The rooms on the upper floor are laid out around a centrally located piece of built-in furniture and can be flexibly subdivided by sliding wall elements. The living area forms a spatial continuum with surprising moments. Alcoves like the window reveal with a seat and a panoramic view invite you to linger. The two-storey dining room offers a wide-open view of the hillside. Through a fixed glass window, the dining alcove adjoining the kitchen overlooks the hillside, as well as the entrance corridor below. The study provides access to the exit, situated above the entrance.
The attic floor crowns the house. It is mainly south-facing via a terrace with views and an outdoor shower. A wall opening into the extra-high dining room creates a connection with the floor below and with the garden side. The arrangement of extra-high rooms reinforces the perception of topographical conditions. They create generous moments in a dense spatial structure, where, on closer inspection, unexpected lines of sight surprise us. Clinker bricks, lime-cement plaster, wood and subtle colours ensure the coherence of the storeys.
The clear, strict structure of the interior is also visible in the façade design. Vertical pilaster strips are arranged regularly around the house. The lintel and parapet elements protrude slightly, creating a lively expression in the façade. The clinker bricks are laid in vertical and horizontal courses. The cross bonding gives the façade a graphic texture. Curtain-type exposed concrete elements accentuate the axis of the house.
On the slope side, from the outside the house looks more modest, though the same materials and the same vocabulary are used. The two-storey layout changes its appearance.
