www.archipicture.eu - Edelaar Mosayebi Inderbitzin - Apartment Buildings Toblerstrasse

In 2010 the architectural office Edelaar Mosayebi Inderbitzin in cooperation with the office Baumberger & Stegmeier won the architectural competition for a large housing development in Zurich's city district Fluntern. The appearance of the neighborhood Fluntern is characterized by bourgeois houses dating back to the late 19th century. Later the edification was complemented by buildings of similar character, so that the urban structure seems very homogeneous in this area. The buildings in the neighborhood are characterized by the representative character, with a deliberately staged entrance directly from the street. The road space is marked by the sequence of the individual houses. An important factor in this urban structure are the gaps and in-between-spaces, which allow insights and views through the gardens. Despite a significantly higher density the proposed competition project shows how it is possible, to integrate a new development typological and atmospherically into the existing inventory, and at the same time to take into account current aspects of cooperative housing. The Toblerstrasse project is a continuation of the local building structure with solitary buildings, having a unique street façade. At the same time the buildings generate specific spaces inside the settlement. By rotating and mirroring the same houses a monotonous expression is avoided despite the high repetition factor. Rather it creates a composition of different, almost organic volumes. The individual facades are folded several times so that façade lengths are created, which are familiar in this district. At the same time this strategy significantly impairs he actual size of the volume. The housing complex includes a variety of different apartments, all of them feature two or even three exposures. The access to the buildings is made from the Tobler- or Hadlaubstrasse through a forecourt and into the well-lit entrance hall, which gives into the stairwell. The individual apartments evolve as spatial continuum around a central core, containing all bathrooms and an open kitchen. Wherever possible corridors were evited in the apartments, resulting in a diversity of large living rooms and entrance areas. Due to the various circulation options the apartment appear very generous despite the rather small surface. The non-orthogonal floor plan geometries produce an flowing space. The houses try to continue the existing homogeneity of the quarter, while at the same time developing its own identity. Motives from the context, such as the low balustrades or the flower window are transformed into a new and own appearance. The supporting structure consists of a conventional solid construction made of brick masonry and in situ concrete with few prefabricated supports.