A crystal-clear lake, surrounded by dense pine forest. Sandy soils interwoven with roots. And a wonderful silence, broken only by the sounds of nature. In this idyllic setting this beautiful forest property is situated. In the 1920s, it was part of an artists’ colony. Today, it serves as a refuge and place of relaxation.

Originally, a simple wooden summer house from 1926 stood on this property in the southern region of Berlin. This charming little house was in such a desolate state that renovation was not an option though. The conceptual approach was to recreate the atmosphere of the dark forest cottage, its proportions and simple construction in the new weekend house. The building is positioned exactly on the former site, in the center of the property. The new cabin was entirely built as a wooden structure, like its forerunner. From the outside, it is clad in dark brown glazed pine paneling.
With its simple form and understated appearance, it blends into the natural surroundings and gives the impression that it has always been there. At the same time, the external appearance, with its slightly overhanging roof and dark wooden façade, plays with the mythologies and fairy tales of houses in the forest.

The dark building is accentuated by a building incision and a few deliberately placed façade openings with extra-wide frames. In contrast to the dark brown building, these openings and frames are painted white. These color accents also refer to the interior, which is lined on all sides with white-painted pine cladding.
The outer and inner board cladding has a milled round profile. This design feature for the ceiling, roof and walls gives the space a specific atmosphere and is also a reference to the façades and partial interior pane ling of the building that existed before.

The centerpiece of the weekend home is the main living and recreation room. This room extends to the roof with an open space and naturally includes the other areas, such as the gallery above the large western overhang. The rather narrow room appears much larger thanks to the façade-wide glazing on the ground floor and the spatial extensions of the adjoining veranda.
The kitchen and bathroom are designed as separate rooms and are, like the living room, accessible via the small corridor.
This Corridor also accommodates the built-in pine plywood furniture such as the wardrobe and storage cupboards.
The kitchen is designed as an open, yet independent room with a large opening to the living room and a large panoramic window of the same size with a view into the forest. The furniture was also customized entirely from pine plywood.
In addition to the rooms on the ground floor, the sleeping berths are located on the upper floor.

Building project: Forest house | New building of a vacation home in the pine forest of Brandenburg
Client: private
Completion: 2010
Photographer: Clemens Poloczek, Werner Huthmacher
Architectural films: Ertzui Film

The house with a gable, known from countless children’s drawings, is the German archetype of housing. This typology creates the foundation of a surprisingly unconventional home for a couple that moved from a converted school auditorium back to the region of their childhood: To the green neighborhood next to the forests of Leipzig, with lush gardens and family homes that are facing the street with their gables.

The defining characteristic of the neighborhood was translated into a gabled residential building. However, this figure did not remain alone. In keeping with the motto “two are better than one”, the overall appearance of the new building is made up of two offset, narrow volumes.
This makes it possible to remain within the axes of the neighboring buildings, to react to the scale of the surroundings and at the same time to create the required spaces in a compact way. Instead of simple typification, the architectural design aims to transform the existing components in a way that an independent architecture is created. A clear and straightforward building with precise openings into nature. The views focus in particular on the forest to the east and the orchard to the west.

At first glance, the double gable and the round windows do not seem to fit in with the typical townscape of the suburban location. The façade, with its rough-sawn surface made of board-formed exposed concrete, seems to be closer to the forest than to the neighboring houses.
And yet these familiar proportions blend naturally into the architectural surroundings.
The house is accessed via a densely planted front garden. This acts primarily as an arrival zone between public space and privacy.

Behind the exposed concrete of the exterior walls, thermal insulation made of ecological and energy-efficient hemp limestone was applied on the inside. This hemp limestone was used for the first time in Germany for this project.
A warm, finely textured clay plaster on the walls and ceilings creates a connection between the differently proportioned rooms. For the flooring in the public areas, a shimmering green natural stone was chosen, which is also used in the sanitary rooms and showers. Natural oiled oak parquet was laid in the upper, private rooms.

The atmospheric lighting of the surrounding nature is falling through the finely structured round portal into the entrance. Like in a cave, these arched shaped doors and passageways continue throughout the house and create a connection between the open cooking and dining area -a reminiscence of the barrel vault of the school auditorium, where the owners previously lived in Leipzig’s city center. The living level of the new building is slightly elevated and surprises with a space that extends up to the roof. The private master area is situated on another intermediate level; a few steps above are the rooms for children, guests and working. Each room celebrates the individual view into nature and deliberately plays with the discrepancy between the elongated double shape of the house and the structure of rooms contrary to that.
This confusion is reinforced by two bracing walls in the interior, whose concrete has been left unplastered and rough-sawn to match the façade.

Building projekt: Duplex | new building of a family home in Leipzig-Portitz
Client: private
Completion: 2023
Photographer: Clemens Poloczek

The site is part of the Eichkamp housing estate in the west of Berlin, designed by Bruno Taut. The special atmosphere of a forest settlement can still be felt today. On one of the last free plots of land, this defining characteristic is being translated into a new two-storey residential building with a converted attic and a partial basement.
An almost quadratic floor plan combined with a pent roof gives the house an undirected and independent appearance that is surrounded by old, tall deciduous trees.
The dark green exterior plaster allows the building to blend into the greenery of the surrounding gardens.
With the trick of making the upper floors and the roof slightly cantilevered, the building not only gains slightly more space, but also acquires a sculptural appearance.
Apart from the basement, the house is built entirely of wood. The wood also remained the dominant material on the inside. A homogeneous flooring, made of natural mastic asphalt with integrated floor heating connects all storeys while contrasting with the light wooden surfaces. The sustainable concept is consequently continued in the energy supply provided by a water-burning stove. A house in the city and in nature alike. New and yet already part of the famous history of the estate.

Building project: Greenkamp | new residential building in Berlin
Client: private
Completion: 2024

The image of this village is characterized by its structural density. Starting from the “Rödelbach” creek and the main road with its compact building structures alongside the road, the appearance of this village develops with increasing heights to a loose architectural structure. These are built as three- or four-sided farms, that continue to dissolve into the fields, meadows and forests. The property of this residential building stretches from the creek in the valley, across the dissolving farm structures and into the wide landscape.

The conceptual idea is to anchor the new residential ensemble within the property and the local surroundings as if they had always been part of it. The main building, consisting of two connected, staggered volumes and the barn is an interpretation of the three-sided farm that is typical of rural regions in the Ore Mountains. Apart from this structural interpretation the ensemble rounds off the village through its axial connection to the neighbouring buildings.

The result is a unique home, that not only speaks the language of its surroundings, but also translates the regional and historical features into a contemporary yet familiar architecture. Regionally typical materials, like brick and slate, characterize the exterior of the building trilogy. The materials used on the inside, like wood and natural stones are equally natural and durable. A residential ensemble of integrity and longevity is being formed. Because the most ecological building is the one that lives the longest.

Building project: Crinitzberg residential ensemble | new building of a family home in the Ore Mountains
Client: private
Completion: 2026 – under construction

For many years, this property in the forest has been carefully planted by an ambitious botanist, the previous owner of the site. The new owners have made it their goal to preserve and continue this natural heritage. Therefore, the new building was to be added into the existing greenery as carefully as possible. As an elongated, rectangular volume, with a cantilevered roof on all sides, the new building stands out discreetly yet expressive within its context of the forest. The cantilevered roof is continued with a surrounding terrace. A lifted and roofed front area that creates the connection between inside and outside. As dark as the surrounding pine trees the exterior appearance of the house is characterized by an anthracite-colored glazed wooden cladding. To emphasize the views into nature, the inside of the building is also developed with dark colours. The high open spaces on the short sides of the building allow the view up into the wooden construction of the roof. The feeling of maximal comfort and safety continues in the living area that is lowered into the ground. It is the interplay of contrasts that give this house and site its identity. Refuge and intimacy on the one hand, wide views and spaciousness on the other.

Building project: Forrest hideaway | new building in the pine forest
Client: private
Completion: 2026 – under construction

The property is located on the west side of the “Lago Maggiore”, in the Italian mountain village of “Donego”. It is a village that has been almost completely preserved in its original state, with buildings constructed of local granite stone in a technique that is typical of the region.
Due to its original and mostly well-preserved buildings, Donego is a protected site and forms the basis for the architectural approach.

The steeply south-facing hillside plot is parted into three, already existing, levels of height. All three terraced areas offer an extraordinary view across the lake.
On these levels, there already are buildings made of stone; so-called “Rustici”. The concept is to restore, carefully convert and add to them in the typical local way. The fundamental idea is to create a “village within the village”. The courtyard on the middle level as the centre of the ensemble builds the “marketplace” and focal point. The existing structures of the Rustici frame the yard, while it opens up towards the spectacular panorama of the lake and mountain landscape to the south. To emphasize this framing aspect even more, a new building will be placed on the north side of the courtyard, embedded into the existing rocks. A large, rectangular opening creates a link between the inside and outside. Two steps lead down into the new building, the salon. This gesture of carving into the rock is supposed to be recognizable from the inside too.

The lower level on the property is designed as a mixture of a paved area and a lush green garden oasis with a little plunge pool to the west. A narrow staircase provides access to the lower garden level, from which a footpath leads directly to the lake.

Building project: Rustici Donego | conversion of an listed Rustici at the Lago Maggiore
Client: private
Design: 2022

The new building on the corner of the Theresienstrasse/Palaisplatz is intended to adequately complete the baroque district of Dresden’s inner “Neustadt” and thereby transform the historical baroque typologies into a high-quality appearance. Using baroque design elements, the new buildings were anchored in the urban context as if they had always been there. However, the size of the facade openings and divisions, and a subtle choice of materials allow the existing building to merge with the current spirit of the times.
The closing of the gap, created by the two solitary buildings and the extension on the Palaisplatz, was considered as one unit. Based on a colour scheme that was inspired by the Baroque period and the nature of the nearby park, the three buildings are differentiated in their colours, while still creating one unit of the new quarter.

Project: Königshöfe Dresden | new residential complex in Dresden’s Baroque Quarter
Client: CG Group
Facade workshop 2017: 1. Prize
Completion: 2023
Project in collaboration with Fuchshuber Architekten, Leipzig
Photographer: Simon Menges

As the “Cabin in the Woods”, which was completed in 2011, is extremely popular, its residents regularly receive visitors and there was a desire for a sauna and a small studio, it was time for a structural addition.
In analogy to the Waldhaus, its extension was also made entirely of wood in 2022. In this case, the solid timber floor slab and roof structure were made of cross-laminated timber.

In perfect harmony with its surrounding nature, the Lodge’s rough-sawn cladding is shimmering in a rich and dark forest green. Depending on how the light is falling through the trees, the one-storey building seems to become one with the pine trees around it. This simple house is highlighted only by differently designed openings in the façade. The wellness- and meditation space is characterized by a round window and a double-winged door with glass coffering. The entrance to the studio in the east is also built as a coffered double door. These images evoke memories of the structured paper walls of Japanese tea houses.
The natural surfaces of the wood have also remained visible on all walls on the inside. Only a transparent glaze to protect the wood has been added. The interior of the Sauna is characterized by reused and recycled wood boards.
The small window opening and the glass arched door allow the view from this dark, secluded, and warm chamber into the silence of the calm pine forest.

Building project: Serenity lodge | new building of a Guesthouse in the pine forest of Brandenburg
Client: private
Completion: 2022
Photographer: Clemens Poloczek

The spatious property marks the border of a dense residential area in the village of Lichtentanne, at the foot of the Ore Mountains. The open landscape begins here. Wide fields give way to hilly meadows, lined with poplar trees. As beautiful as the views into the endless landscape, as rough can this nature be. Wind and weather shape the foothills of the ore Mountains with an immense force. The architectural concept incorporates both: the reference to the surrounding landscape, as well as protection from weather.

Instead of a solitaire, this new residential building is designed as an ensemble, consisting of three independent volumes. This building composition of consists of a two-storey main house, an orangery and a commercial building. It marks the border between the existing neighbourhood and the open countryside.
With simple orthogonal structures this ensemble is consciously placed in its surrounding context. At the same time, it straight-forward design of the three buildings gives it its own powerful expression.
The deliberate positioning of the three volumes on the large property creates different outdoor spaces that allow unique views into the landscape to the south as well as creating visual connections between the buildings and the green spaces on the site itself.

The three buildings are positioned around the heart of the property: the private garden. While the main house and the orangery are more or less enclosed on three sides, the ground floor is fully opened to the south and south-west, towards the enclosed garden.
The external simplicity of the design gives little hint of its internal complexity: In the main rooms, such as the kitchen, living room and foyer, large open spaces and galleries provide exciting views of the roof with its visible larch-timber construction. In addition to the windows, the built-in furniture, the flooring on the upper floor and the staircase are made from larch wood as well. The fireplace and its bench are made of natural shell limestone. With the interplay of contrasts and opposites an unexpected spatial surprise is created.
An ensemble that combines consistency, integrity and the connection to nature.

Building project: At the fields edge | new construction of a residential complex in Lichtentanne
Client: private
Completion: 2016
Photographer: Simon Menges

There are open and closed buildings. Bounded and unbounded spaces. Flowing forms and linear structures. The idea for a house in this vast landscape in Millbrook, 140 km north of New York City, was to combine these different qualities to create a unique form, bespoke to the location and task.
Under a sweeping, curved concrete roof, semi-circular rooms with orthogonal shapes merge into a hybrid spatial structure. A house without corners and edges, closed and open at the same time. The building is positioned on a prominent site, continuing and completing a rock formation, with sweeping views of the Catskills and Hudson Highlands. It is a very special home on a very special site.

Building project: Walter residence | Study for a residential and studio building in Millbrook, New York
Client: Artur Walther, New York
Design: 2018