Bläsi residential and studio house
Basel, Switzerland | 2016
The location and minimal dimensions of the given plot in the middle of dense Kleinbasel, as well as the related (building law) framework conditions, noticeably shape the residential building.
In accordance with the character of the multi-layered neighborhood, four small apartments and a ground-floor studio are realized:
The standard apartment is characterized by a simple, open floor plan, which is fluidly modeled around the eccentrically placed core. In the form of an inner circulation, functionality is combined with a perceived generosity in a small space, and the limits of conventional spatial proportions are explored. The spatial vessel, framed with painted industrial masonry, with its horizontal spaces accompanying the two facades, finds its external counterpart in ribbon windows. On the south side, with the help of large lift-and-slide windows, they transform the respective dining and living area into a light-flooded loggia.
While the standard apartment develops into area, the penthouse expands vertically with and within the striking open core. The studio is perceived as a pierced spatial unit, but functions analogously to the maisonette attic apartment, disentangled over two floors. By connecting the ground-level meeting area via a staircase into an overheight workspace in the basement, the permissible building profile - already limited by the angle of light incidence - can only be fully exploited. Text description by the architects.
