Wohnüberbauung SBB Rüschlikon

The guiding principle of layering also determines the southern façade. The number of floors is not concealed but clearly revealed. The individual loggias—small rooms in the open—lend the lake-facing façade the attribute of the “more beautiful façade,” as is the case everywhere on both slopes of the lake basin. The slight displacement of the covered balconies relative to one another suggests the “arbitrariness” of the decorative sign. The bronze parapets extend along the entire length of the façade, even where no loggias are present. Through the hillside situation and the serial arrangement of window fronts, an association with the mountain hotel emerges, a special position within an ordinary context. The bronze mesh (Kool shade) proposed for both façades fulfills the task of providing transparent shading with high efficiency (fixed on the lake façade in the parapet area and manually adjustable on the railway side). It protects and veils the building elements behind. The permanent shading, consisting of bronze micro-louvres (1.27 mm lamella depth), requires little maintenance. It is also energy-efficient, prevents the greenhouse effect inside the building, replaces glare protection toward the railway, and slightly reduces noise (between 2 and 3 dB). Characteristic, however, is the aesthetic added value of this construction: a bronze mesh that is hardly perceptible to the residents. A diaphanous, translucent weave that lightly and always differently reveals the interior. A fabric that captures the light of the night and transforms the building into a lantern. The apartments occupy a demanding site, not easy to build upon.

Out of the restrictions of building regulations, topography, and railway noise, added value is sought in the apartment typology. Most of the apartments enjoy dual-aspect light, opening toward the railway field with the evening sun and toward the lake basin (ventilation can take place exclusively from the lakeside). This makes it possible to dispense with devaluing access galleries; the villa in a row replaces the gallery house. Maisonettes are found on the ground floor and in the attic, with floor-through apartments in between. Diagonal relationships, both in plan and elevation, enhance the complexity of the spatial structure. For example, the ground-floor apartments in Building 2 possess an almost double-height dining space with a freestanding, built-in kitchen element. The art of cooking enjoys a view of the lake and the gallery of bedrooms with children sitting and studying. From the rear, evening light filtered through the bronze mesh enters. Hurrying commuters returning home and screeching S-Bahn trains pass unnoticed by eye and ear. The counterpart to this spatial fusion is found in the attic maisonettes, in the form of an inner courtyard, open and oriented toward the evening sun, connecting the two levels. Diagonally opposite, the loggia opens toward the lake basin. Along the entire lake-facing façade, generous textile awnings appear like festive, waving flags, without obstructing the distant view.

Client: SBB Immobilien AG

Planning: General Planner Bétrix&Consolascio AG / Rossetti+Wyss Architekten / Büro für Bauökonomie AG, Lüchinger Meyer Partner AG, Rutishauser für Bau, Verkehr und Umwelt GmbH, Hefti Hess Martignoni Elektro Engineering Aarau AG, Waldhauser Haustechnik AG, Büro Friedrich, Bakus Bauphysik und Akustik GmbH

Competition: 2005, 1. Prize