Per una viticoltrice | Messner Architects

The origin of this remodeling project was the client’s own yearning for a cozy and friendly first-floor apartment in her house, which is situated in midst of a beautiful garden. Moreover, the apartment’s technical outfit had no longer been up to speed with what we regard as modern parameters for comfortable living. The renovation of the heating system, the kitchen, the worn-out floors and doors were all inevitably necessary.

Once the project was up and running, our client also decided to remodel entry area and bathroom. This agricultural homestead has been seen several remodels and expansions over the decades.

Given that wooden beam ceilings, existing in parts of the house, had already been visibly spent, installing more loads was not recommended. Furthermore, for structural reasons, we did not want to change the position of partitioning walls, hence the original floor plan arrangement was largely preserved.

The floors in kitchen and hallway were executed as light dry construction on the wooden beam ceilings, whereas the hollow brick stone ceilings in the entry area and bathroom permitted for a more heavy-duty floor structure.

Thus, a crucial aspect during planning was the selection of flooring depending on static options: chestnut parquet for kitchen and hallway, ground concrete for the entry and bathroom. From the covered loggia on the first floor, one enters the apartment, where ground concrete, chestnut wood and the color white dominate the first impression. The hallway leads into the kitchen. Day light flushes the corridor all the way to the wardrobe, thanks to an enlarged opening. A kitchen island with a polished quartzite countertop and details of chestnut wood is positioned parallel to the corridor. A tiled stove with a wooden drawer closes off the kitchen in the back. Across from it, we find a seating corner with a dining table and a corner bench. On the other side of the room the sink unit, and kitchen appliances find their place in a room-high kitchen unit which on the backside harbors a pantry. Apart from the chestnut wood, the ground concrete, and the various accents and surfaces of the color white, there are individual elements in varying shades of turquoise that add a fresh sparkle to the space in the form of chair- and table legs, corner bench, furniture fronts, plinth bases as well as tiles.

This assignment went beyond the creation of cozy, bright and functional rooms as part of a renovation project. It was important to us that we were able to bring back some light and hope to someone, who’s been hit hard by fate.