Dreifamilienhaus Küsnacht

The apartment building occupies sloping terrain overlooking Lake Zurich. The project embodies the presence of a massive body, settling into the ground on all sides and, in turn, structuring the adjacent voids. It is a carved volume, carefully inserted into its surroundings while accentuating a sequence of charged exterior spaces.

At the main entrance, the building presents itself as a calm body, cantilevering above the expansive guiding wall. The spatial arrangement of the building elements receives visitors as they step onto the site. This access area on the mountain side is direct, open, and public. A gently descending ramp leads to the main entrances beneath the cantilever, while also serving as the driveway.

Behind the hard shell unfold three generous residential floors, illuminated from all sides. Cantilevered elements respond to the exposed position, providing shade and shelter from rain, while reducing glare within. Large-format window openings intensify the relationship between occupants and surrounding space. Deep within the building mass, daylight openings connect to the outside and improve orientation within the demanding spatial sequence.

The envelope is cast in light-colored concrete, monolithic and rigid. Up close, the surface reveals a softness, a tactile smoothness. Defined by oversized, finely textured formwork, the concrete takes on an appearance reminiscent of worked stone rather than raw material. The cast form is precisely shaped, a crafted body of sculptural quality.

Client: Private

Planning: Rossetti+Wyss Architekten, Ingenieurbüro Hansruedi Schlatter, Artho Elektroplanung, Classen Haustechnik GmbH, Bünder Sanitärplanung AG, BWS Bauphysik GmbH

Photos: © Jürg Zimmermann

Competition: 2010, 1. Prize