Rizza House

House Rizza is located in Vacallo, a village of 3000 inhabitants in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland, which is situated on the border of Italy (Province of Como), nestled on the foot of Mount Bisbino. Vacallo was originally a farming village, which gradually devolped into a residential area during the twentieth century. The house is in the "historic core" of the town, with a portion of settlements dating back to the seventeenth century. They are protected by the regional government that has set strict rules on renovating.

The project wants to underline the historical background of the building on the outside while on the inside the intention is to give people the perception of a bigger space then the bare 30 square meter on each floor: The windows are flushed with the inner surface of the 50 cm wall structure (to increase the perception of the old walls from outside).

The double height space in the living room increase the perception of verticality and size of the spaces.

The lightweight metal stairs is visible from all spaces which yearn for a visual relationship with eachother.

Equipment room and wc are located at the entrance floor, kitchen and the living area are at 1st floor, the 2nd floor hosts a small room and a wc the study space that overlooks the living room, while at the top floor is located the master bedroom (with his cloakroom an wc) that overlook the surrounding valley of Mendrisio.