The main goal of the concept was to obtain a house which could be cozy and nice during the midst of summer to the very heart of winter.
The second point of the concept was to minimalize the major changes to the house , trying to keep as much as possible the old structure and valuable elements such as the staircase , the fireplaces and the balconies as well as the interior garden. Thereby the old entrance has been kept as it is because it was thoughtfully placed there by the initial architect and we called this the winter entrance or the guest entrance.
The house has now three separate entrances and no matter which one you use, the first thing that can be seen is the interior tree of the house.
The second entrance is straight from the street and is called the summer entrance. Basically the old "Autorimesa" has been extended to create an ample dining and living hallway and in order to connect it to the old cantina, which is now the kitchen, we proposed a small glass corridor which can in fact be completely folded during the spring or summer. During the winter it creates a shortcut between dining and kitchen in order to make serving easier and it also encloses the inner courtyard, which has been kept open. We also wanted to connect the courtyard to the balconies in order to create like a vertical garden but the little space made placing a normal staircase a bit difficult because we wanted to have enough room in this inner courtyard for a table which we envisioned to be a kids playing table or for cutting vegetables, mushrooms, anything that can basically be done outdoor and requires more members. So the staircase and the tree had to be combined in order to save space and the staircase is not an ordinary one, but a stairway around a tree.
The third entrance is the service entrance or the hidden one. It is basically only for the owners of the house and maybe some close fiends. The door is hidden in what seems to be a simple white wall- but behind it lays an oasis of relaxation, and in order to get to the actual door it is necessary to cross a bridge above a pond, which has a separate way also to the spa area.
Because home should be a zen place this is the way towards the private entrance and also the most efficient when coming home with groceries. The actual home door gets you in a small indoor garden, filled with plants that you can use in the kitchen, like basilico, pepper and other aromatic plants.
After that you arrive in the kitchen which has been envsioned not only as a kitchen but as a gathering spot with a large kitchen island , a view towards the tree and a direct access to the newly proposed elevator.
The elevator has a double opening going from kitchen straight to the hallway near the master bedroom or better, straight towards the cinema room. So if you are watching a movie the popcorn is only a button push away although the house is pretty large.
Of course being double sided it also connects the main hallways of the house being placed in front of the original staircase.
Now to co-living space / the living room goes vertically up to the last level. We created a large opening in order to place another tree which could grow almost 9 m high now. Above the living room we have the co-working space which can be accessed from the original outdoor staircase, from the original indoor staircase ( or elevator) or more unconventionally trough a quick ladder which is also decorative.
Co living and co working are also connected vertically and from first floor you can access furthermore a creative corner, designed for painting or other creative activities taking place at the second floor. The new spiral staircase takes you from co-working area to a glass floored open hallway at the second floor. From this point you can either enter the creative corner or to one of the kids rooms.
Bathrooms are also carefully placed. the bathroom on the ground floor has opening towards a inner garden common with the spa area so plants offer a great ambient keeping also a feeling of privacy.
Almost the same thing happens at the first floor if we look upon the master bathroom. It has opening towards a balcony with high railing where we placed a jacuzzi, while bathtub is placed near the green balcony. In order to make the design more unique we proposed a walk-in shower directly In the bedroom area, which we envisioned could be also a decorative piece of design , working like a wooden accent in a more saturated environment of the master bedroom.
Living and dining are opening towards a great infinity pool , and while they are completely foldable ,
living room can turn into an outdoor terrace.By folding the curtain walls it actually becomes a large outdoor area with a semi-enclosed- kitchen, so there is no need for a summer terrace or summer kitchen because the house is actually convertible.
Office can be accessed directly from the outdoor - keeping a vintage air where business partners were invited in a office such way that they did not pass trough the house.
It is also accessible directly from living area, being a more quiet workspace if needed.
And there is one more little detail we should mention: On the forest level hallway we decided that it was too much unused space so we planted a tiny bamboo forest that goes trough an opening in the ceiling straight to the second floor. Between these bamboos we envisioned shelves of books making it a 2 story library. This was inspired by the large spaces above the winter entrace with large glazing which could make the perfect reading spot.
The outdoor renders have been kept with moderate vegetation in order to have a clear vision of the house while in order to help envision the concept in a proper manner, we also added some moodboards, that show the possible resulting interior designs generated by the architectural concept.