K-House, Konin, Poland by STOPROCENT Arc|Houses

STOPROCENT Architekci: House K is one of our projects that had waited the longest for its construction. We started working on it in 2012, yet the house has just been finished in 2022.

In the meantime, the project and the construction have encountered some adventures. The original concept assumed that the building would be part of a larger complex, which was intended to be a multigenerational family residence. Later the client has decided to move her house to another, much more attractive location. When we started working on the necessary adjustments to the project, the site had virgin appearance, partly overgrown with a forest, gently sloping into the valley of a nearby river. When the house was finally completed, the neighborhood became significantly more developed and populated.

As requested by the client, the project was to be modern one-story building giving the residents a feeling of being close with nature. That is the reason why the building was broken down into three smaller volumes, each with a different function.

The volume including the garage and technical rooms was located on the street facing side of the plot. Next to it, in the separate volume the daytime zone including the kitchen, the dining room and the living room was designed. The volume with bedrooms and bathrooms can be found in the internal part of the plot facing the slope and the greenery.

Because the client emphasized special need for intimacy, the entrance facade has nearly no windows (except for a single narrow window meant for the cat). Even the garage door has been hidden in the wooden panels on the elevation.

In contrast, internal elevations are mostly transparent. Large glazing connect interiors with the garden and the terraces. The corridors and the technical rooms have been additionally lit with the skylights dedicated to flat roofs.

The building appearance has been designed to be a combination of smooth, white surfaces of the plastered walls, slick floor-to-ceiling windows and decorative, wooden façade panels.

The construction hasn’t been easy. An unprofessional contractor worked negligently and didn’t comply with the project. This has led to a complete shut-down of the works and a long court trial. At the same time the house was deteriorating and overgrowing with greenery. Finally, when it seemed like there was no hope left for the building, the client proved to be exceptionally determined and consistent. The building was striped to its bare concrete structure, and carefully re-built, with great attention to detail and finishing materials.

House K was one of the first projects of our studio. All the troubles and complications associated with its construction were rather difficult experience for us. That is why we really enjoy and especially appreciate this final result.

What was the brief?

K-House was designed for a successful young couple living in mid-size town in Central Poland. Initially, the house was to be a part of a bigger settlement for the entire multi-generation family, but finally the decision was made to move its location into a different, much more attractive, spot.

Oops, we had to start again, from scratch.

What were the key challenges?

House K was one of the first projects of our studio. We had no sufficient experience and all the troubles and complications associated with its construction were rather difficult for us. An unprofessional contractor worked negligently and didn’t comply with the project. This has led to a complete shut-down of the works and a long court trial. At the same time the house was deteriorating and overgrowing with greenery. Finally, when it seemed like there was no hope left for the building, the client proved to be exceptionally determined and consistent. The building was striped to its bare concrete structure, and carefully re-built, with great attention to detail and finishing materials. That is why we really enjoy and especially appreciate this final result.

What are the sustainability features?

We generally avoid any excess in our designs, starting from the useable square meters and size of the building. We try to be rational in functional and engineering solutions. For example, the K-House has a series of skylights providing natural light in technical areas , southern windows have special film limiting overheating of the interiors, rainwater is being collected in underground cisterns and used to water the garden. All this results in lower consumption of water and energy and provide low maintenance cost for the user.