House in the woods | Rene Kops

House in the woods

What started out as an advice on purchasing property, developed into a more than a decade long construction adventure resulting in the restoration of and extension to an almost 100-year-old wooden house located in the middle of a forest, in the town of Eichgraben in lower Austria.

The main challenge was to achieve a modern yet comprehensive design without losing the historical layers of the inherited structure.

Embedded in a beautiful, sloping site among tall trees, the existing building consists of a masonry base and an upper wooden structure with a sloping roof.

In the first step the dilapidated structure has been carefully restored, preserving as much as possible of the original shape and fabric. After the completion the client wanted an extension to accommodate guests.  

The proposed design links old and new volumes establishing an architectural dialogue between the past and the present by sampling the existing shapes and materials and transforming them into contemporary language.

Natural stone veneer as the prevailing material underlines the strong connection with the existing building. Its greyish shades and rustic simplicity create a visual contrast with the natural, warm tones of the wood and masonry of the existing building.

The middle volume linking old and new acts as a connecting element, circulation area, and a place to relax: generous glazing from floor to ceiling creates a relationship with the natural surrounding, offering ample view over the adjacent landscape.

Client: Private

Size: 300m2

Project: 2009-2020

Photos: © Miroslava Andric