X-07 Wolf

View of the "red head" detail with reflected images of the facing trees.

Project Details

• Project Name: X-07 Wolf
• Client: Confcooperative di Bolzano
• Project Type: Housing design
• Principal Designer: Salvo Di Silvestro, Marco de Fonzo
• Design Team: Giorgio Gottardi
• Contractors: Benedini Costruzioni s.r.l., SiwaBau s.a.s.
• Year of commencement of project: 2002
• Year of completion of project: 2006
• Location of site: Merano, Italy
• Program: 39 apartment units

Above: north elevation. Bottom: South elevation.

The Building

Guided by the various parameters of the brief, the project lead to an exploration of an unfiltered dialogue with the context and natural elements. The concept for the housing project was derived from the aim of designing a "smart" building able to react to different atmospheric conditions as well as enabling an ease of maintenance. This lead to different treatments of the two main facades and guided the choice of the materials, colors and dimensions of the openings.

Detail of the northern facade.

On its northern facade, the building is equipped with a "skin" (ventilated facade, HPL panels) which becomes a powerful architectural element as its protective task is aesthetically enforced and made evident and clear. The "skin" translates into a roof as it turns from the vertical to the horizontal plane. The openings are reduced to the minimum in the apartments while three of the volumes which house entrances and staircases are left completely open to light, emerging as super scaled soft lamps at night. The colors are cold, lines hard and the corners sharp, as this side of the building attempts to evoke the glacial landscapes

Cold colors and hard lines are used on the northern facade to evoke the glacial landscaped.

The design of the south facade was inspired by the abundant presence of sunlight. Generous balconies and terraces occupy the entire facade along with a system of sliding panels with moving lamellae which allows the dwellers to allow sunlight to filter into the interiors of the unit as desired. The result is an ever-changing front, depending on the position of the Sun and the needs of the dwellers. The 4 "sky flats" on the topmost floor are equipped with large terraces and pergolas. A range of colors and the calm horizontal lines are used to recall the Mediterranean.

View of the mountains framed by the openings in the facade.

The north-east corner of the building was designed as a "head" for the entire construction. The Chinese red stone of the facade reflects the trees on the street below. The red "head" is probably the most powerful sculptural element, since it works as an architectural connector of different planes of the facade and reflects the lines and shadows in its surround.

View of the southern facade with its red sliding panels.

Each apartment was designed in order to reduce the wastage of area due to circulation to the bare minimum and to let each room enjoy the best orientation. Bathrooms, bedrooms and service spaces are located on the north side of the slab while living spaces and kitchens face the south. The entrances were placed centrally to avoid dark corridors. Circulation spaces were equipped with wall closets to optimize storage. Each dwelling has wide balconies on the southern side and a small one facing north.

Credits

• Text: Courtesy of the architect
• Photographs: Courtesy of the architect
• Compiled and edited by Varun Ajani