Reconstruction of the family house Lerchova

photo: Jakub Holas

The goal of the reconstruction was to convert a family house into a multi-generational house (3 apartments - apartment 2+1 (1st floor) = 85 m², apartment 3+kk (2nd floor) = 85 m², apartment 2+kk (3rd floor) = 75 m²) with entrances to the apartments on each floor. The core idea of the design was to highlight the original and new parts both formally, functionally, and materially. New volumes "grow" inside and out on each floor of the house, including the roof.
The study of the architectural modifications for the family house anticipated the removal of the existing two-armed staircase in the southern part of the layout. A new steel two-armed staircase remains in the same place but with a narrower geometry. Another significant adjustment was the enlargement of the vestibule. Here, space was created for a separate entrance to the ground floor apartment and access to the new staircase, which is the main communication element in the house. All partitions were removed in the upper floor except those between the bedrooms. The result is an open living space that includes a kitchen with an island, a dining nook, and a living room, or salon. The dominant element in the open space is a brick multi-purpose block defining the bathroom with the original cast-iron oval bathtub, the kitchen, pantry, and space for the refrigerator. The interior design concept includes built-in furniture in the form of a library, a wardrobe, and a shelving wall in the salon. The social, dining, kitchen, and sanitary functional areas of the apartment are on one axis, emphasized by visual contact. The existing two rooms remain unchanged, and the loggia on the southern side was converted into an office. In the attic, the layout is similar to that on the upper floor. The attic apartment is open to the truss except for the bedroom, above which there is a mezzanine level serving as storage or living space accessible by a ladder from the living room. The floor is at the original level, only in the kitchen and bathroom is it elevated above the bearing beams, creating so-called "stages."
The horizontal and vertical structures of the added parts are designed from timber construction, externally clad with larch slats in a slanted direction, and internally with spruce paneling in a vertical direction. The surface of the bathroom on the upper floor is made of pigmented lime plaster in contrast with other lime-cement plasters in the apartment. The diverse surface treatments thus emphasize the concept of revealing the original and new parts. To create an impression of an open living space on the upper floor, the partition to the sanitary area is not built to the ceiling. As a result, the central space feels more open and airy. In the gable of the roof dormer, a circular window with a stainless steel baluster frame was placed, which frames the panorama of the city in the exterior and creates a space for rest and seating in the interior.