Condominium Trnovski Pristan

Exterior view of the Condominium Trnovski Pristan.

Project Details

• Project Name: Condominium Trnovski Pristan
• Client: Begrad, Novo Mesto
• Project Type: Architectural Design (Housing)
• Principal Designer: Jurij Sadar, Bostjan Vuga
• Design Team: Tina Hocevar, Miha Pesec, Tadej Zaucer, Mojca Kocbek
• Date of commencement of project: June 2002
• Date of completion of project: March 2004
• Location of site: Trnovski Pristan, Ljubljana, Slovenia
• Structural Engineers: Elea
• Service Engineers: Te Biro (Mechanical & Electrical)
• Landscape Design: Andrej Strgar
• Traffic / Site Engineer: Gasper Blejec
• Construction Cost: Euro 4 Million
• Site Area: 4640 square meters
• Building Area: 1365 square meters
• Total Floor Area: 4010 square meters
• No. of Storeys: Basement, G+2
• Structure: Reinforced Concrete
• Cladding: Ventilated Facade, Ceramic Tiles on Aluminium Plates, Aluminium Double Glazing

Exterior view of the apartment building with its pixellated facade and inter-connecting windows and balconies.

The Building

The condominium is a two-floor apartment building with fifteen customized units, a common entrance lobby, an interior winter garden and an exterior summer atrium.

Condominium Trnovski Pristan - Site Plan [opens in a pop-up window - 162kb image]

Condominium Trnovski Pristan - Ground Floor Plan [opens in a pop-up window - 101kb image]

Condominium Trnovski Pristan -Plan: G+1 [opens in a pop-up window - 90.5kb image]

Condominium Trnovski Pristan -Plan: G+2 [opens in a pop-up window - 86.3kb image]

Condominium Trnovski Pristan - Roof Plan [opens in a pop-up window - 43.4kb image]

Condominium Trnovski Pristan - Building Section [opens in a pop-up window - 54.3kb image]

Condominium Trnovski Pristan - Building Section [opens in a pop-up window - 38.1kb image]

View of entry to the building.

Its basic volume is agitated, partitioned and non-monolithic allowing for optimal illumination of all apartments as well as a connection of the interior spaces with the exterior through green terraces, consoled balconies and winter gardens. The partitioning of the main volume is in sync with the irregular rhythm of the balconies. These balconies extend far from the building towards the circumferential garden.

View of the summer atrium in the building.

A composition of pixel-like, multi-colored ceramic tiles and pre-dimensioned black metal frames link the windows and balconies realized in orange wood. Through the technique of 'pixelization' in the facade a unique relation between the building and its immediate surroundings is established, creating dynamic shifts in the perception of the building size in the eyes of the observer.

View of spillover spaces in the apartment building.

The large window openings interconnect between themselves, fragmenting the volume of the building by creating what appears to be a heavy structural framework. Between this heavy structure composed of window frames, a light membrane of 'pixellated' ceramic tiles is stretched.

Interior view of the building.

During the day, the sunlight reflecting off the glass surfaces causes the windows to look dark. The black pixels of the tiles soften these edges binding them to the light ceramic membrane. A distant view of the building further enhances this effect.

View of the 'salamander house' amidst its context.

The brighter pixels of the tiles (mostly yellow) re-establish a dialogue with the natural surround along the quay and the willow leaves and greenery within it. It is thus that the 'salamander house' adapts and generates a new context within the existing one.

Credits

• Text: Courtesy of the architect
• Photographs by Hisao Suzuki, Ramon Prat, Sva Archive, Courtesy of the architect
• Compiled and edited by Varun Ajani