Articles by Andreas Luco

The replacement building on a very steep slope is situated in a prime residential location in a picturesque valley in the Surselva region in the canton of Graubünden. The multi-generational house is anchored to the slope by means of a concrete basement, on which rests the prefabricated wooden structure. It can be entered at street level directly from the road on the hillside. On the valley side, there is a garden area formed by an existing high retaining wall in front of the base story, partially protected by the ground floor projecting above it.

The project offers structure through the use of a courtyard rooted in both the site itself and its surrounding architecture. This court constitutes the bare essence of the building. On the one hand, the site of Vigla is characterized by its numerous traditional sheepfolds; composed of simple rectangular volumes adjoined to small courtyards that allow to increase the living space of the animals by associating the interior space to a larger outside space.

The integral reform of this house is based on the use of traditional materials such as handmade clay or noble materials such as stone or wood. All this combined with continuous flooring made with micro cement brings a clean touch to the space. In this way, the floor also gives protagonism to the ceilings that are kept with their original moldings, with the exception of the living-dining room, in which we opted for wood effect beams to bring even more warmth to the space. All this creates an environment where the neutral tones and textures of the materials, in combination, create a harmonious effect in each room.

This project is part of a set of 3 houses that were commissioned to us in a new urban development that`s taking shape on the outskirts of La Plata.

The Periscope Hut by ELSE won the international architecture competition “Le Festival des Cabanes” in France. It is located near a small village near Lake Annecy in Saint-Ferréol, which is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the French Alps. With minimum construction budget, the project was entirely built out of locally sourced spruce wood, and constructed together by the architect and dedicated local volunteers.