Arrivée

Horn, Switzerland

Visualization © J. Gehrcken

Apartment Buildings

Architects: Carlos Martinez Architekten

Location: Horn, Switzerland
Year: 2021
Client: Mettler2Invest AG St.Gallen
Team: David Gschwend

Arrival at the lake – The estate is situated at one of the last open lakeside plots directly on the shore of Lake Constance. The location’s sense of freedom is tangible in each housing unit and throughout the grounds.

The premise was to offer all apartments a view of the lake – also in the areas of greater development depth on the western side of the plot. The high-quality owner-occupied apartments are situated with an unobstructed view by the lakeside where no development will be able to obstruct the view. The second row of housing, which accommodates the rented apartments, still has generous vistas onto the water. At the drive to the cantonal main road, the recessed buildings create a courtyard towards the city.

The arrangement of volumes highlights the exclusive location of the lakeside housing, its expanse pervading the entire neighbourhood. Surrounding balconies pick up on this openness and guide it into the spaciously designed living and dining rooms, which for their part discreetly shield the private rooms.

Towards the lake, the balconies and loggias extend the interior space. The “boxes” with the private rooms form the relevant underlying structure; the respective living spaces are spanned between them. Balconies at varying depths loosen up the regular façades. These canopies allow residents to step out of the actual building shell to experience the surroundings directly.