An Alpine Block
Zurich gallery owner Eva Presenhuber granted architects Andreas Fuhrmann and Gabrielle Hachler creative license in designing her second home in the Lower Engadine region of Switzerland. "I told them: 'Do what you want. If you want a house with an architect's signature, that's what you have to do;' " an allowance the architects took to heart. While the use of cast concrete was a distinct departure from the area's architectural vernacular, the megalithic, almost glacial, presence seems perfectly at home in the mountain landscape. The largely neutral interior, almost exclusively concrete and plywood, provided Presenhuber an ideal venue to showcase her private collection of artwork. (Included in the collection is work from American Karen Kilimnic, her work shown above applied directly to the wall.) The restrained details of the structure do well in avoiding the feel of a bunker, establishing a comfortably spare interior space with a bold but appropriate facade. Via the NYTimes.
