paul de ruiter architects erects transparent villa k in germany

paul de ruiter architects erects transparent villa k in germany
image © pieter kers
all images courtesy of paul de ruiter architects

dutch practice paul de ruiter architects has recently completed their first project in germany, located on a sloped site in the small town of thuringen. from street level the construction of the house becomes evident- a long stretch of parallel concrete planes form the floor and roof planes. full height glass walls provide the exterior and interior partitions allowing the surrounding landscape to become completely exposed from the inside. the living areas and bedrooms are arranged in a linear fashion to enjoy equal views. projecting from the interior of the home, beginning at grade and protruding from the declining terrain at the far extend of the site, a pool extends perpendicularly from the transparent volume. the crossing forms suggest a simplistic and architecturally strong gesture on the site, designed to match the client’s wishes.

in context
image © pieter kers

the 6-car garage and technical rooms are in turn embedded within the topography of the property, embracing a more cavernous environment that not only hides the more undesired program from the exterior and living spaces but also creates a thermally distinct zone within the home that creates opportunities for natural heat transfer. the warm air collected from the glass-clad structure and the cool air present in the subterranean areas are pumped and stored to redistribute throughout the house to maintain a stable comfortable temperature.

image © pieter kers

image © pieter kers

pool projects over front lawn
image © patrick voigt

driveway behind opaque wall
image © patrick voigt

living room
image © pieter kers

view towards the pool
image © pieter kers

glass partitions slide to open the interior
image © pieter kers

front terrace bridges over swimming pool
image © pieter kers

entry to the pool at the center of the house
image © pieter kers

image © pieter kers

image © pieter kers

image © pieter kers

image © pieter kers

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project info:

client: private
location: thuringia, germany
gross floor area: 248 m²
volume: 867 m³
program: energy efficient villa, with garage moved into the mountain scenery
start design: july 2010
completion: july 2014
project architect: paul de ruiter
project team: willem jan landman
advice construction: van rossum