The Garden House by Tham & Videgård Architects
Swedish architectural firm Tham & Videgård have completed the Garden House in Viksberg, Sweden
Full description after the photos….
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Description of the Garden House by Tham & Videgård Architects:
The client wanted a garden, the actual reason why they decided to move from their duplex apartment in central Stockholm to this country side location at lake Mälaren. Consequently we proposed a house conceived as an integrated vertical addition to the garden, where indoor and outdoor spaces gradually blend and interact.
The triangular foot print is the result of a steep slope that diagonally crosses the site. With one of the long facades facing south we also managed to eliminate a pure northern façade. This further helped the idea of plants climbing high on the oversized trellis that cover some of the windows so that in time they will become hidden within the greenery.
A double height winter garden also function as a natural pre-heating of fresh air. The roof terrace offers very long views over the nearby hills towards lake Mälaren.
Construction is all wood, both structure and finishes.
Location: Viksberg, Sweden.
Area: 180 sqm (240 Bta) + roof terrace and winter garden.
Architect: Tham & Videgård Arkitekter
Chief architects: Bolle Tham and Martin Videgård.
Team: Fredrik Nilsson, Lukas Thiel, Erik Wåhlström, Johan Björkholm, Dennis Suppers.
Photographer Åke E:son Lindman
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Hayden on 25 May 2010 at 5:08 pm #
Beautiful.
Susan Gravely on 25 May 2010 at 8:36 pm #
I guess they just finished the house, so the greenery on the outside hasn’t had a chance to grow up the trellis. I would love to see photos of this house in a few years when it is covered in climbing plant life.
phillip on 26 May 2010 at 4:47 am #
this house doesnt impress me. what inspired the triangular plan(the site doesnt seem to justify it)? the interiors look so basic & bland.
TW on 26 May 2010 at 5:35 am #
Am I allowed to say how awful this house is?
The client wanted a garden so the designer gives them a concept instead – the suggestion of a garden. Despite an abundance of land around them, their views out and access to a REAL garden is limited.
And in a few years time the house will be covered in greenery so that the house is trapped within it’s own green wall. And that greenery will take over because it will be uncontrollable within the crevices of the lattice.
Plus the only way of viewing all this greenery (ie. their ‘garden house’) is to step OUTSIDE and view it impassively.
And their only view of the landscape is to climb 2 sets of stairs to the roof.
I bet the clients thought the architects idea was great at the time and now regret their folly.
marshen on 26 May 2010 at 12:09 pm #
I don’t usually like lattice clad buildings with vines growing all over but I like this one for its sculptural quality.
Mario on 26 May 2010 at 1:27 pm #
Oh please New-Frank-Lloyd, please New-Gaudi, please New-Venturi show yourself to these people. They’re so hard to entertain..and bored..
Jonathan on 27 May 2010 at 3:38 am #
TW,
Did you not notice the plan that quite clearly shows the house sitting in a garden? Or the bit about the house disappearing into the garden over time?
I’m with Mario, I wish all the people who so readily dismiss projects would show their own work…
Cristina on 27 May 2010 at 6:33 am #
Beautiful, I’d like to see it with the climbers fully grown.
silverspurr on 27 May 2010 at 9:47 am #
i mostly agree with TW except for one thing. Its natural for everybody to view the design of his own house from outside.
On the other hand, the design looks very good, and got me. But there can be rised problems about mantainace of the green grill and the relationship with the owned surroungings, maybe claustrofobia. It somehow looks like the inner space is prohibited to the exterior proximity.
At first look i was convinced that the propriety limit was the wooden fence, and protects the house from public domain.
But enought theory, its about the inhabitants to put a verdict on it.
wpgmb on 27 May 2010 at 10:27 am #
these guys are pro.
Arka on 27 May 2010 at 2:29 pm #
My major concern is that this house seems to sit in the landscape and be openly exposed to winds.
This type of form, is natural to the urban fabric, where it appears in some city plots, like the Iron-Building in New York, and so, to perceive the triangle shape in the natural landscape context is a contrast to the urban condition. Sometimes the volume will not be perceived but a wall. The tectonics is missing. The ceiling or roof is not treated in the same language as the general form.
It is also a bit too soon to talk about this house because it is not finished yet… How would it look like during the various seasons once plants are grown?
I do not think this is a house garden, perhaps a triangle green volume.
What is a house garden anyway? This project is also about expectations. It is a bit like a mental conceptual game and to be explored in models… but I would not play with the clients unless the agreed so.
Ryan on 27 May 2010 at 5:14 pm #
This house a bit odd. While I would like to see photos of the house after foliage has the chance to grow up the exterior, I imagine it would look pretty ugly during the winter months when the vines are dead and brown. Also not a fan of the wire cage around the staircase. This house feels much too like being trapped in a chicken coop.
TW on 27 May 2010 at 11:23 pm #
Jonathan – this isn’t a tit for tat site. So showing my own work on here doesn’t put a value on my professional opinion.
The fact is that the exterior of this house will not last. If the lattice is exposed to the elements it is going to look shabby very quickly. But even covered in a vine, the maintenance of this would be ludicrous. And from what I can see, the lattice is attached quite lightly so I wonder if the architects have considered the colossal weight that a climbing plant would apply to the exterior structure?
To interpret a clients need for a garden into a design that will resemble a hedge is like designing a house as a water feature for a a client that wanted a connection with a great ocean view.
And for what’s it’s worth, I like the interior. Simple palette and elegant spatial proportions.
Samuel Jacobsen on 28 May 2010 at 12:08 am #
This is a great concept. The materials that were used seem a bit flimsy, but I love the idea of the design.
loren on 10 Jun 2010 at 12:45 am #
no offense, it looks like green tea cake.but i love the sixth image.looks like i can stay there forever drinking tea and enjoying the sun.