Residential Building at Albermannstraße

A rigidly structured building volume containing two full-height floors, as well as a half-basement and penthouse floor, corresponds harmoniously with the rather heterogeneous structures along the Albermannstraße. Expansive roof terraces define the upper and penthouse levels with deep recessions and create the appearance of four separate houses. Two glazed access cubes break up the street front of the 50 meter-long volume and provide various views in and out. Because of the great difference in the height of the site between the Albermannstraße to the north and the Kellerstraße to the south, the half-basement is visible only from the garden. For this reason, the units on the ground and half-basement floors are designed as maisonette apartments. The living spaces of these apartments, with their room-high windows, face the garden, while the back part of the half-basements contain storage and service rooms. Upper level and penthouse units are designed as two- to four-room apartments, each with its own roof terrace. The building’s grid, visible from the outside, corresponds to the arrangement of the structural elements (concrete ceilings and wall partitions) and orders the south façade of the ten units. Wood panels on the upper floor, situated in front of the kitchens and baths facing the street, break up the floor-high wall elements while adjustable wooden elements located on the garden and street façades screen the units from view and the sun.