SAOTA, known for its mastery in blending exquisite designs with the natural scenery surrounding them, has pioneered yet another earthy, harmonious and luxury project in Cologny – an exclusive suburb in the Geneva Lake region of Switzerland.
Over the years, homes designed by SAOTA have showcased luxury and earned gold medals, as seen in our last feature of the seventh edition (2019) of the international Domus Restoration and Conservation Award (www.premiorestauro.) in Italy.
As a result of being the base of operations for several multinational corporations and associations, Geneva is known for its urbane atmosphere and international accolades. The Rive Gauche (Geneva Lake’s eastern bank) houses the most exclusive properties in Geneva. In contrast, Cologny is resident to the most eminent diplomats, royal families, and show business stars. Hence, it houses the most sought-after properties.
Little wonder this Captivating and Delux museum-like home, like another premium SAOTA project, sits on a slope in the most sought-after neighbourhood in Switzerland.
The Villa Courbe residence, which features a total floor area of 1,937m² (20,850ft²), is a project designed by SAOTA in 2018. Situated on a 0.4-hectare (1-acre) site in Lac Leman, Switzerland.
Just as many forces have formed its alpine setting over time, Villa Courbe is a residence shaped intuitively and iteratively by many hands – from sun and topography to brief and local zoning regulations. From the water, the house appears almost at one with the wooded hills that rise gently out of the lake and, at the same time, very different from the traditional suburbia that surrounds it. The need to respond to the topography that came before drives the design to contrast with the neighbouring houses that appeared only after the glaciers and ice had done their work.
Entering the property from the street, the design negotiates the lakeside slope in a series of full-width “slices” that contours across the wedge-shaped site. The first of these is a triple-storey light scoop that houses a gallery space and creates a threshold to the more private parts of the house beyond. Then, responding to the brief’s critical requirement, guests can circulate vertically down to a top-lit basement art space that opens up into an entertainment area. Finally, functionally separated in the “slice” closest to the lake, the principal living rooms are on the Ground Floor – a sequence of dining, kitchen and family rooms are sheltered below an upper storey housing the bedrooms while a double-height living room noses towards the lake creating shelter from the cold north wind.
Entry is on a mid-level below a suspended canopy that further parts the slices into two wings and, in doing so, opens up a view across the lake to the mountains beyond. Swooping down between these wings, a sculptural planted roof echoes a distinctive fold in the distant alpine skyline and responds to prescriptions in the local zoning scheme.
As fundamental as the sharp peaks and soft hills that characterize the views from the plot, sunlight, that precious commodity on the 46th parallel, is the other guiding hand that shapes the spaces and sculpts the forms. The site responds to its northwest orientation, and the team made every effort to bring south light into the house.
Carving the programme into parallel “slices” exposes two south elevations. The first of these – at the entrance – is largely closed up with zinc cladding to provide privacy, but high-level clerestory windows scoop art-friendly light deep into the basement gallery. The fissure between the slices creates a generous and private south-facing courtyard in the centre of the plan and this, in turn, has a lightwell cored out into the basement below. The roof is punctured with strategically placed skylights. At the same time, the impact of the summer sun is moderated by a laser-cut aluminum shading screen that follows the curves of the roof and plan and provides a datum for glazing and window treatment.
The pool is also used as a lightbox with a glass wall bouncing light into the basement. The result is a series of luminous spaces characterised by varying types of light – from soft art-friendly illumination that filters down to the basement gallery to the generous daylighting that suffuses the principal living spaces.
Materials were chosen to respond to these bright spaces. Zinc-clad on the outside, the entrance appears robust and opaque, while within the deep light scoop, the basement areas are lined with white walls and ceilings. In the main living spaces, rich timber ceilings and natural stone walls combine to add warmth and texture. Black marble shot through with white veins, and limestone layered in horizontal bands, echo snow-clad peaks and sedimentary rocks, while the front door and gates open up in Bond-like copper-clad clockwork.
Concrete is also used in various ways – from heavy board-formed panels in the entrance hall, to the monolithic curve of the pool cabana, to the curtain-like walls of the basement pool and spa, which were cast using a proprietary elastic mould system. Triple glazing (some of it curved), solar water heating, geothermal heat pumps and an insulated, planted roof combine unobtrusively to raise the house’s performance to a level suited to its environment.
Designed by SAOTA and built by a dedicated team including SRA – Kössler & Morel Architects as Architect of Record, Interior Designer Thierry Lemaire, T. Ingénierie Civil Engineers, E.G.C. Chuard Ingénieurs Conseils SA as HACV Engineers, BIFF SA Façade Engineers and Landscaping by Martin Paysage. The house blends in and stands out in homage to both its spectacular lakeside setting and the many hands that made it.
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CREDITS:
Project Name Villa Courbe
Project Location Lac Léman, Switzerland
Lead Designers SAOTA
Project Team Phillippe Fouché, Stefan Antoni, Greg Truen, Mias Claassens & Ayanda Ntsingana
Architect of Record SRA – KÖssler & Morel Architects
Interior Designer Thierry Lemaire
Civil Engineer T. Ingénierie
HACV Engineer E.G.C. Chuard Ingénieurs Conseils SA
Façade Engineer BIFF SA Bureau d’Ingénieur Fenêtres et Façades
Landscaping Martin Paysage
Project Photographer Adam Letch