027 Plywood House – Herzog & de Meuron

Project: 1984
Realization: 1985

As an addition to a house on a corner site, the new volume has a visible entrance from the street in order to provide public access to the private marionettes theatre. Accordingly, the new building is thought of as a lightweight box, like a musical instrument, sitting on projecting sleepers and consisting of plywood sheets in a balloon-frame construction that recalls the traditional craftsmanship of Japan. The roof, the main room and the bearing structure are all clearly articulated. Plywood on the inside is also used to form the shutters.

The addition’s relationship to a mature Paulownia tree elicits an embracing gesture in the south façade. Together with the double posts of the central bay and the three-sided enclosure, the reentrant south façade recalls Le Corbusier’s Swiss Pavilion (Cité Universitaire, Paris 1930), while the refined detailing with the larger overhang of the roof and the smaller ledges above the windows are perhaps more reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright.
Herzog & de Meuron, 1988

Drawings

Team

Partners: Jacques Herzog; Pierre de Meuron
Project Team: Renée Lévy (Project Architect)

Facts

Planning: Construction Management: Herzog & de Meuron Basel Ltd., Basel, Switzerland; Structural Engineering: Helmut Pauli, Ingenieurbüro Schaub, Basel, Switzerland
Specialist / Consulting: Wainscot: Hürzeler AG, Magden, Switzerland
Building Data: Gross floor area (GFA): 2'400 sqft, 223 sqm; Gross volume (GV): 24'190 cbft, 685 cbm

Bibliography

Luis Fernández-Galiano (Ed.): “Arquitectura Viva. Herzog & de Meuron 1978-2007.” 2nd rev. ed. Madrid, Arquitectura Viva, 2007.

“Herzog & de Meuron. Natural History.” Edited by: Philip Ursprung. Exh. Cat. “Herzog & de Meuron. Archaeology of the Mind.” Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montreal. 23 October 2002 – 6 April 2003. 2nd ed. Baden, Lars Müller, 2005.

Wilfried Wang: “Herzog & de Meuron.” 3rd adv. and rev. ed. Basel / Boston / Berlin, Birkhäuser, 1998. (= Studiopaperback).

Gerhard Mack, Herzog & de Meuron: “Herzog & de Meuron 1978-1988. Das Gesamtwerk. Band 1. The Complete Works. Volume 1.” Edited by: Gerhard Mack. Basel / Boston / Berlin, Birkhäuser, 1997. Vol. No. 1.

Jacques Herzog: “Die verborgene Geometrie der Natur. The Hidden Geometry of Nature.” In: Gerhard Mack (Ed.). “Herzog & de Meuron 1978-1988. Das Gesamtwerk. Band 1. The Complete Works. Volume 1.” Basel / Boston / Berlin, Birkhäuser, 1997. Vol. No. 1. pp. 207-211. First published in: Jacques Herzog: “La Geometria oculta de la Naturalesa. The Hidden Geometry of Nature.”
In: Josep Lluís Mateo (Ed.). “Quaderns d’Arquitectura i Urbanisme. Geogafies. Geographies.” Vol. No. 181/182, Barcelona, Col-legi d’Arquitectes de Catalunya. Association of Catalan Architects, 09.1989. pp. 96-109.

“Einfamilienhaus in Bottmingen, 1985. Jacques Herzog & Pierre de Meuron, Architekten BSA.” In: Kommission für das Baselbieter Heimatbuch (Ed.). “Baselbieter Heimatbuch 16. Siedlung und Umwelt.” Liestal, Verlag des Kantons Basel-Landschaft, 1987. Vol. No. 16. pp. 31-33.

Simone Rümmele: “Um einen Baum herum gebaut. Ein Holzhaus in Bottmingen.” In: “Aktuelles Bauen. Schweizerisches Magazin für Bauen, Architektur und Planung.” Vol. No. 4, Solothurn, Vogt-Schild AG, 04.1986. pp. 44-48.

Martin Steinmann: “Nuove Tendenze. Osservazioni sull’Architettura recente nella Svizzera Tedesca.” In: Claudio Negrini, Giancarlo Rè (Eds.). “Rivista Tecnica. Mensile della Svizzera italiana di Architettura e Ingegneria.” Vol. No. 1/2, Bellinzona, Grassi & Co., 01.1986. pp. 27-32.

Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron, Martin Steinmann: “Reden über Holz. Propos sur le bois. Archithese-Gespräch mit Michael Alder, Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron und Peter Zumthor. Débat organisé par Archithese entre Michael Alder, Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron et Peter Zumthor.” In: Verband freierwerbender Schweizer Architekten. Fédération Suisse des Architectes Indépendants (FSAI) (Ed.). “Archithese. Zeitschrift und Schriftenreihe für Architektur und Kunst. Revue thématique d’Architecture et d’Art. Bauen mit Holz.” Vol. No. 5, Niederteufen, Arthur Niggli AG, 09.1985. pp. 2-15.