© Oliver Jaist
- Architects: stifter + bachmann
- Location: 39030 Pfalzen, Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, Italy
- Lead Architects: Stifter Helmut, Bachmann Angelika
- Area: 523.0 m2
- Project Year: 2016
- Photographs: Oliver Jaist
- Structural Engineering: Brunetti Stefano
- Building Services: Ingenieurteam Bergmeister
- Main Contractor: Unionbau Gmbh
© Oliver Jaist
From the architect. A former artisanal enterprise with a small production hall and adjoining service wing for administration and a company apartment was revitalized and converted for use as a studio + living space + production. The site is located on the outskirts of a village, surrounded exclusively by other artisanal business but directly adjacent to meadows and fields.
© Oliver Jaist
Rather than tear down the not-very-attractive 1980s building, the architects opted to incorporate it into their new concept. The ground and first floors were dismantled down to the support structure, keeping the façade openings and the staircase, and the full storeys were added on top. Levels 0 and +1 serve as a studio, while level +2 and +3 are designated for residential use.
© Oliver Jaist
Floor Plans
© Oliver Jaist
The old production hall was renovated with little effort and has resumed its original function. Enveloping both the preserved building sections and the new volumes over all four storeys is a curtain wall of transparent corrugated plexiglass sheets. This second skin provides additional insulation as well as protecting the unfinished façade insulation of cement-bonded wood panels from the elements. Through this outer shell, pleasantly diffuse daylight enters the rooms, with sliding elements allowing the degree of privacy to be regulated at will.
© Oliver Jaist