Swallow

The steeply sloping plot of land for construction is located in the Berounka valley. A popular recreational area with cottages and gardens is gradually transforming into a residential neighborhood with family homes. The family house on the southern slope is situated at the top, where the best views are found. There is also ample privacy and mature trees that provide a pleasant microclimate in the summer. The main living space of the house is located unusually on the upper floor. This solution offers even better views of the valley and the Brdy mountains, and the kitchen has direct access to an outdoor covered terrace, tucked away among the trees. The attractiveness and diversity of the living space are enhanced by the opening to the irregularly sloped shed roof with peaks at the corners. Various types of large windows facing all cardinal directions ensure a rich variety of experiences throughout the year and in changing weather. The window seat protruding from the façade invites you to sit “on the edge.”

The house is designed as modest yet comfortable living for a family of four. Two rooms, a bathroom, a pantry, and a technical room are located in the semi-buried ground floor, which is cooled in summer by the rear concrete wall. The children's room can easily be divided into two smaller ones. In the bathroom, there is a window with a view by the bathtub. The economical hallway and staircase are visually enlarged by the skylights over the doors and illuminated by a large northern window.

Due to the inaccessibility of the site for machinery, the house is built as a lightweight wooden structure in a post-and-beam system, with most of the materials carried in manually. The ceiling and roof beams are wooden and exposed. They are thus under constant inspection and also allow for hanging things like a hammock. The façade and terrace are made of Czech larch, without surface treatment, minimizing ecological impact. The sloping roof with asphalt sheets combines sufficient slope for reliable water drainage with easy access for maintenance under the mature trees. The collapsed roof plane creates a characteristic swallow silhouette on the main façade.