Duplex brings two houses together as a single, raw, theatrical home in Leipzig
Duplex by Atelier ST is a raw and textured family home born of the transformation of two smaller residential buildings in Leipzig, Germany
![hero exterior of concrete Duplex by Atelier ST](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PEgq7LP58EZiVJeXF8qV6j-415-80.jpg)
'Duplex' seems something of a misnomer for this single-family house outside Leipzig – until you investigate further. Fusing two petite gable-roofed houses into one ample home, the architects Atelier ST doubled down on the syncopated shift of the property’s original footprint. Opening up the two volumes with a series of split levels, they created a conversation between lateral counterparts, introducing an easy flow of space and purpose.
Duplex: a raw home echoing its residents' taste
The project represents a homecoming for the clients, who’d set out years earlier for careers in the city. Returning to the northeastern suburb of Leipzig-Portitz, they brought an appreciation for unconventional design and a real fondness for the converted school they’d been living in. The arch motif that defines the windows and doorways at Duplex nods to the barrel vault of the school’s former auditorium. The graphic curves and their wooden inserts filter natural light through the lush surrounds and into the meandering spaces in ever-evolving patterns.
In the hands of Silvia Schellenberg-Thaut and Sebastian Thaut, the couple behind Atelier ST, the new house puts on a straightforward façade. The exposed board-formed concrete structure, while breaking with the community standard, sits simply and comfortably within the surrounding woodland. It takes up no more space than its neighbours. It doesn’t try to prove itself.
Yet it belies the complex sequence of spaces within. Connected by those archways – or 'portals', in the architects’ parlance – the rooms are in a constant state of flux. Beginning in the open-plan kitchen and dining room, they swing between levels with dynamic efficiency, each one a few steps from the next.
The transitions are easy yet definitive, offering new views and perspectives. Even the shallow staircase leading up to the private quarters, much longer than the others, makes a gentle progression while playing with the elongated framework of the house.
Up here, too, the rooms maintain a close concert with one another. Still, the master suite takes on a hallowed, secluded quality, even though the children’s rooms, office and guest quarters are just a few steps above, on the upper level. The nursery focuses outward through the porthole window to a cluster of fruit trees.
Concrete infiltrates every space, whether in the flooring, built-in furnishings or the two bracing walls that run up through the core. And yet Duplex never gets cold.
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Practically, ST experimented with thermal 'hemplime' insulation plastered with natural clay, an energy-efficient solution that also helps cool the house in summer. The natural palette and woody accents go a long way toward the warm, hospitable feeling that very much blends in with the neighbourhood.
-
‘Hedonistic and avant-garde’: Rabanne’s Julian Dossena on the legacy of the chainmail 1969 bag
Paco Rabanne’s 1969 chainmail handbag encapsulates the late designer’s futuristic, space-age style. Current creative director Julien Dossena tells Wallpaper* about the bag’s particular pleasures
By Jack Moss Published
-
Postcard from Paris: Olympic fever takes over the streets
On the eve of the opening ceremony of Paris 2024, our correspondent shares her views from the streets of the capital about how the event is impacting the urban landscape.
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
The Mercury Prize nominees for 2024 have been revealed
Charli XCX, The Last Dinner Party and Beth Gibbons are amongst this year's nominees
By Charlotte Gunn Published
-
Reethaus is a performance space conceived as ‘a place for radical presence’ in Berlin
Reethaus, a newly opened cultural centre in Berlin, kick-starts a fresh era for the city’s growing creative neighbourhood of Flussbad
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Berlin's Atelier Gardens gets bright yellow focal point within MVRDV masterplan
The bright yellow HAUS 1 becomes a key addition to Atelier Gardens in Berlin, part of an ever-evolving, sustainable masterplan by MVRDV
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
Bike-tyre maker Schwalbe’s HQ embraces sustainability through design
The new Schwalbe office building in Germany, featuring interiors designed by Archiproba Studios, champions contemporary sustainable architecture
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This Berlin house balances romance and strength in a scenic plot
A Berlin house transformed by O'Sullivan Skoufoglou is both romantic and protective
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
KHBT Studio crafts German suburban home overlooking a nature reserve
House ZdM9 is a new German suburban home for a family, set on a spectacular site close to Frankfurt and the River Main
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
A ‘contemporary palazzo’ by David Chipperfield and Studio Mark Randel rises in Munich
‘Contemporary palazzo’ housing project in Munich is designed by David Chipperfield and Studio Mark Randel
By Ellen Himelfarb Published
-
Last days of Berlin’s Tegel Airport celebrated in new photo book
Photographer Andreas Gehrke celebrates Tegel Airport and creates an intimate portrait of the place where the passengers have departed forever
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
‘Ole Scheeren: Spaces of Life’ celebrates ‘form follows fiction’ in architecture
‘Ole Scheeren: Spaces of Life’, a comprehensive look into the work of the German architect, opens at ZKM | Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe
By Ellie Stathaki Published