Location | Pilatus Kulm, Alpnach OW |
Client | PILATUS BAHNEN AG, KRIENS |
Commission | Competition on invitation 2008 |
Planning | 2008–2010 |
Construction | 2010–2011 |
Architects | Graber & Steiger Architekten, Project Architect: Philip Käslin |
Consultants | Construction manager: Jürg Gabthuler, Structural engineer: Dr. Schwartz Consulting, Cost management: Büro für Bauökonomie, Façade engineering: Metallprojekt GmbH |
Photographer | D.M. Wehrli |
The impressive, crystalline silhouette of the Pilatus massif was integrated into the design for the panorama gallery and developed further in an architectural form. The new structure is subtly fitted into the Alpine terrain and develops between existing buildings and striking rocky outcrops into an artificial topography. The polygonal, meandering ground plan and the gentle cross-sectional modulation are spatial strategies that evoke gentle transitions between the developed and undeveloped landscape. The polygonal connecting section choreographs a series of spectacular perspectives and breath-taking viewpoints, while also acting as a perceptive amplifier that stages the reference to the landscape to the fullest extent. The underlying crystalline theme of the volumetrics is also reflected in the structure, construction and materialisation, and is based on a hybrid steel and concrete composite system.
Out of 180 projects, a jury chaired by the Director of the German Architecture Museum DAM, Peter Cachola Schmal awarded the Plant Manager’s Home in Lucerne North with one of the prestigious recognitions "Houses of the Year 2021". Along with the award a comprehensive book was published by Callwey Verlag Munich (ISBN 9783766725301).
Our project in Lucerne North exemplifies that densification today is not only a topic concerning the city cores but also suburban industrial areas. Despite the limited plot size between existing industrial buildings, the interior of the small, three-storey house with its vertical layout offers spatial richness and a high living comfort. The unpretentious wooden building questions the common typology of a private home in the green as well as the modernist dogma of a segregation of functions. A home embedded in an industrial compound brings together working and living in a synergetic way and therefore reduces transport energy. While designing a single-family house we operate between the private and public. The design of a private home must always be seen in the light of public interests, too.