Rien is a small town that has retained its "provincial" charm; even from its center it is easy to reach the surrounding fields and forests. At the same time, it almost merged with the center of culture and business of a world scale - Basel, in addition, it also has its own important attraction - the Beyeler Foundation Museum in a building designed by Renzo Piano. In addition, the German city of Weil am Rhein, with the famous "architectural collection" and the design museum on the Vitra campus, is located very close by.
This advantageous combination of a calm environment and closeness to nature with the advantages of a big city, including an efficient public transport system, shops, playgrounds and schools, is reflected in the project of the Bureau Ferrara Architkten - a residential complex with 29 apartments. It sits on the edge of downtown Riyen, where its densely built development merges into sparse residential areas.
Three polygonal buildings are placed along the border of the block. Quiet streets around and a green area in its center make life in these houses as comfortable as in the countryside, while all the necessary cultural and service infrastructure is very close. The laconic volumes of buildings are devoid of decor: their shape is emphasized by the cladding of the facade with Hagemeister clinker bricks: it is he who creates the image of a residential complex, "urban" in its restrained elegance. At the same time, the tones of the red-brown variety "Lubeck" are perfectly combined with the color of the surrounding buildings. The variety of the facade is given by traces of a unique scale, varying from brick to brick. The narrow clinker format (290 x 52 x 90 mm) emphasizes the elongated silhouette of the residential buildings. Offset masonry by a third helps to make the wall surface a “carpet” with a subtle combination of colors. The architects emphasize that their choice of Hagemeister clinker bricks as a facing material, in addition to its varied color, was also influenced by a significant range of molded clinker, its resistance to any external influences, and minimal hygroscopicity.
Double-walled brick facades conceal a flexible layout of 28 apartments with 2-5 bedrooms and one studio (70-160 m2). All of them are suitable for people of all abilities and all ages. The apartments face the garden (this is how all the loggias of the complex face), the nearby park or towards the center of Rien. Windows and loggias are arranged so that the views are as extensive as possible, and the interiors are protected from outside views. Three full-fledged floors are crowned with a fourth "attic", smaller in area, but with spacious terraces.
In addition to the appearance of clinker facades, the authors of the project paid a lot of attention to the location of their building in the urban space, as well as green areas. Asymmetrical residential buildings make the edge of the block permeable, while framing the views to its center and, conversely, from the inside to the street. The width of the aisles also reflects the transition from public to private territory. The fields and often marked by a strip of trees separating them, the typical rural landscape around Rihan, the authors of the project used as a basis for landscape design. The private gardens next to the house are separated by strips of tall grass, perennials and shrubs. They merge into a common green area that resembles a full-fledged park.
about the project
Architects: Ferrara Architekten AG (Basel)
Construction: 2015-2017
Clinker: Hagemeister
Clinker facade area: approx. 2500 m2., Sorting "Lübeck" ModF (290 x 90 x 52 mm)
