Design Awards preview: day 5

Best new private house

There is just under a week to go until the Wallpaper* Design Awards and every day during the run-up to the awards ceremony we are presenting the shortlist for the ten International Judges' Awards, exclusively on Wallpaper.com. Day 5 sees the contenders for best new private house. All winners will be announced on the 11th of January.

A69 Architects

Villa Lea, Czech Republic

In this cleverly divided single-family house, the architects play

with the concept of inside and outside space. The ground floor

is designed as a social space, separated from the garden only by

a glass wall. The first floor, home to the bedrooms, is enveloped

in a single concrete frame, with light filtered through three atria.

The bare concrete emphasises the simple, geometric approach.

www.a69.cz

Álvaro Leite Siza Vieira

Casa Tóló, Portugal

This eye-catching weekend retreat owes its remarkable views to

its tricky location, clinging to a 35-degree slope in an isolated area north-east of Porto. Álvaro Leite Siza Vieira’s design features a remarkable set of 164 cascading concrete exterior steps, followed by a further 86 inside, where the minimalist interior features white walls and ceilings and pinewood flooring.

Felipe Assadi

20x20 House, Chile

Chilean architect Felipe Assadi produced the entire building, even its especially designed furniture, based on the 20cm x 20cm dimensions of a ceramic tile. The guesthouse is a stark, simple glass box achieving unique lightness and transparency. The living space

is sandwiched between the bedrooms/bathroom area and a terrace, and the whole building glows when illuminated at night.

www.felipeassadi.com

John Pawson

Baron House, Sweden

John Pawson’s design for Fabien Baron’s house draws on the local Swedish vernacular, but uses cement blocks and timber detailing to create a contemporary sense of abstraction. This country home is in total harmony with its surroundings, its visible lines synchronised

with the landscape. The house is divided into two lofty, light-bathed volumes, separated by a courtyard with views in every direction.

www.johnpawson.com

Nolaster

Casa OS, Spain

On an exposed, windy site atop a 30m cliff on the north coast of Spain, this single-family summerhouse overcomes the challenge

of the elements and the clients’ demand for adaptable space with

a low-energy, simple and flexible design. Casa OS sits gracefully

on a column grid, bright and minimalist, welcoming multiple use possibilities and with scope to sleep 24 people.

www.nolaster.com

6 January 2007 | Architecture