Dufourstrasse, Zurich
The competition entry, which was awarded first place, achieves the natural unpretentious coexistence of a new development and a historically developed neighbourhood. Attractive small flats are built above distinctive car workshops on the ground floor.
The plot in Seefeld in Zurich is framed by buildings and architecture of very different kinds. The proposal reacts in a differentiated way to the neighbouring situations. The building is divided into the classic zones of plinth, shaft, and roof.
The generous hall structure of the plinth provides space for the free layout of ideal, modern, and representative car workshops for the AMAG group. On the upper levels the floor plans allow almost all the apartments to profit from the very different qualities of both the street and courtyard sides; they participate in the urban life of Dufourstrasse while also enjoying the wonderful view in the direction of Uetliberg and the Albis chain of hills. A moderately sized two-storey area gives each apartment a restrained grandeur that evokes the aura of middle-class living in Seefeld.
The facade offers a contemporary response to the stately, richly decorated 19th century facades of the buildings opposite. A delicately formulated rooftop parapet raises the facade visually by one storey, giving the relatively low building an appropriate presence.
Site plan
Ground floor
1st floor
2nd floor
3rd floor
Cross section
Northeast elevation
Southwest elevation
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