Architects: Wespi de Meuron Romeo Architects
Area: 180 m² (1938 ft²)
Year: 2021
Photography: Giacomo Albo
Lead Architects: Luca Romeo, Markus Wespi, Jérôme de Meuron
City: Gambarogno
Country: Switzerland

Family House designed by Wespi de Meuron Romeo Architects in San Nazzaro, Gambarogno, Switzerland has utilized the irregular plot shape to create a unique living space with clear rectangular heated interiors and courtyards on the valley and mountainsides.

House in san nazzaro / wespi de meuron romeo architects

The house is designed for a family of four. The building’s irregular outer form is shaped by the plot and border distances. A clear rectangle, corresponding to the heated interior living space, is inscribed in this irregular form. Inner courtyards are located in front of the living space on the valley and mountainsides.

The polygonal exterior form and terrain morphology make the building appear as an archaic rock. This effect is enhanced by rough-washed concrete surfaces, which darken with weathering, climbing plants on the façades, and small square wall openings.

Towards the private street, the building presents as a discreet, single-story, closed structure. The only opening is the steel gate leading to the entrance courtyard. A 3m (3,9ft) wide forecourt with traditional natural stone paving and trees connects the house to the street, enhancing this space.

On the valley side, the house appears as a larger, stepped volume, designed on three levels. The upper floor includes the entrance, and living-dining room with an open kitchen, with two completely closed façades and two fully glazed sides towards the courtyards on the uphill and downhill sides.

The entrance courtyard on the mountainside protects the house from street views while providing optimal lighting and direct sunlight for the living space. Closed courtyard walls on the lakeside reflect sunlight into the interior. An external staircase in a thick wall leads to a small roof terrace offering unlimited views of the lake and landscape.

The living-dining space with the open kitchen functions as an outdoor space in dialogue with the partly green inner courtyards on the mountain and valley sides, further enhanced by various roof lights, conveying the changing atmosphere and light.

Four rooms and the bathrooms are on the middle floor, with natural lighting ensured by inner courtyards protruding to the valley side. The lowest floor contains a utility room, storage, and technical rooms, along with a secondary entrance and garden exit.