Martina Hügli
MSc Architecture ETH
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Everything You Need
Guest Studio Lütjens Padmanabhan
with Fiona Wiesner
ETH Zürich
2024
The identity of the plot is mainly characterized by industrial buildings that house car mechanics, different craftsmanship as well as sports facilities. In their parallel placement they show a strong directionality. Our building joins this alignment and places itself as an addition to the existing structures towards the very border of the train tracks.
It is a closed and simple volumetric form. The placement of the volume forms a courtyard in between the former industrial halls and the new building. Its structure is based on a 4m grid. The grid extends towards the existing through the means of steel bars and forms a wide Laubengang that mediates between the buildings.
This focus on combining living and working comes from our potagonist Bettina who is in her early 60s. Through her various stages of live that included studying ceramics, having a family on a farm, getting divorced, re-marrying and having grandchildren, her atelier always came with her as a very own work space where she could break out from her daily rituals.
The inside layout of the flats is defined by an elongated room that connects the two facades. Everything needed for life is directly attached or inside this room. While the expression of the of the architecture is very rough, a few elements such as sliding doors, a bench along the window or the mirror cladding for the columns become important spatial reference points.