Loft house

Year 2009 - 2011
Location Domžale, Slovenia
Typology Single-family house
Scale 180 m2
Status Completed
Authors Miha Volgemut
Photo Grega Eržen

The house was designed for young family that wanted to move from the city center to the country side. Their life-style is explicitly urban, open and creative, so the house is thus the result of the symbiosis of country-side typology with the typology of loft, which has the nature of open, single-space, workshop-like dwelling.
In the settlement the house is the last-one in the row, so the surrounding is therefore open towards the open field on the north and west. The house is designed to be oriented mainly towards the Alps on the north and towards the garden on east, because in south and west the space is interrupted by neighboring house and the road. There are two terraces that has two characters, one is semi-public with the entrance and open towards the street, the other is private and its open towards the garden.
The house has two floors: entire ground floor of the house, except WC, utility and depository, is one open space that continues also towards the mansard space. The space of the house is therefore horizontally and vertically as continuous and open as possible; the rooms are separated only by light, movable panels. The ambience of the house is created with materials and surfaces such as big concrete wall, steel stairs and epoxy floor, which suspended from sentimental homeliness, tries to produce creative, workshop-like atmosphere, which serves the purpose to create communicative, open house that will work as a medium of family life as much as of social and cultural events. 
The ascent into the mansard space, along the big concrete wall and natural light above, opens to the mansard hallway that functions as gallery space. This central feature is enriched by the movement of the sun above during the day across the concrete wall and creates transformable ambience of the space. From the hallway there are entrances into the three rooms and the bathroom. Part of the loft is also upper landing under the ridge that will serve to withdrawal or play. Big value of the house is also west balcony on upper floor that is open towards the vast field and very suitable for evening resting under the stars.