House ST

location: Ljubljana, Slovenia
project date: 2011
completion date: 2013
area: 230 m2
type: residental/office
client: private

project team: Mojca Kocbek

Stresen family house (House ST) is located in the street listed among the National Heritage Protection assets in the city centre, on the site where an old house, dating back to 1897 used to stand. At first, the reconstruction of the existing house was planned, with the idea of preserving some of the original main walls. However, during the process of pulling down the house it became evident that the walls were in a really bad condition, therefore the house had to be pulled down completely. 

The linear plot with north-south orientation was definitely a challenge. The first challenge was the treatment of its street side, which needed to preserve more or less the same forms and volumes as the original house. The second challenge was how to position a family house on a very noisy street with intense night life, full of bars. The third challenge was how to position the house in a very densely populated neighbourhood nevertheless ensuring optimum privacy and light.

On the northern side facing the road, public programmes are organised with the office/studio on both floors. On the southern side along the green patio there is an apartment of 140 m2. The idea was to open the house towards the patio and to ‘close’ it towards the neighbouring building and the street. The house has two entrances, one from the street side and the other from the courtyard on the west side of the house. This layout allows different scenarios throughout the years that enable organisation of programmes in different ways: office+apartment, studio+apartment, apartment+apartment etc.

The house has a classical facade in the colour of the street paving and grey roofing of traditional bobrovec (clay shingles) used in the area of the city centre. It has a pent roof with plenty of skylights which more than sufficiently illuminate the mansard floor. The interior is bright and spacious with high ceilings. The family’s wish was to gain as much space as possible for the living area and to make the children’s room on the mansard floor as big as is possible. Two boys share their room for sleeping and playing. When they need to study, they use the library on the ground floor. The elder son’s wish was to be able to look at the stars from his bed whereas the younger one wanted his own stage/play hole inside the room. A perfect spot above the staircase was found, which turned the room into their own little kingdom…