Lakeside Residence, Austrian House, Residential Building Images, Architecture Design

Villa by the Lake, Western Austria

Residential Development in Austria design by Architect Alexander Diem

22 Sep 2014

Design: Architect Alexander Diem

Location: Western Austria

Photos © Andreas Balon

Villa by the Lake in Austria

It is with an impressive private house, a villa by a lake in Western Austria, that the Vienna-based office around architect Alexander Diem first garners the attention of a wider public.

Already since 2001, the young architect has been active realizing projects from Vorarlberg to Vienna. The lakeside villa marks a pinnacle in his steadily growing project portfolio, and also the office’s theoretical underpinnings are manifested in this extraordinary building.

Fence, garden, wooden facade, exterior wall, social rooms, private rooms — the farther one gets into the villa by the lake, the more private and gentle the building appears.

Privacy is the central theme of this single-family home in close proximity to a lake. In a time which supposedly knows no privacy any more, the built volume celebrates the transition from public to private spaces. The value assigned to, and the resultant hierarchy of, spaces derives directly from how long you stay in them.

The stairs, for example, are treated as a subordinate area and are reduced to mere necessity in regard to ceiling height and floor space. By contrast, living rooms are laid out very generously, with ceiling heights up to 5.6 meters. Rounded floor plans define a counter-position to the usual rationalist architecture, generating a sense of homey security.

The distinctive wooden facade self-assuredly takes up the rustic patterns of the region. With panels closed, the cut-out shapes which symbolize food, harvest, and fruit cast shadows on the inside and almost look like exotic wallpapers.

The panels are variable and may be kept open or closed as required. The facade is not only for sun protection, but also enables controlling the degree of privacy desired. While offering possibilities for seclusion and intimacy, the house is by no means isolated from its local environs: the lakeside villa responds to its site-specific context, integrating it with the universal needs of the inhabitants.