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Scape: Villa G

Conceived by Scape among the Swiss mountains, the villa creates an artificial landscape made with white volumes of different heights, opposed to the natural one.

Villa G in Sorengo, on the edge of Lugano, Ticino, stands on a long narrow strip of land on a steep slope, part of a hilly area, bordered on its short sides by a private road and another property. On the long sides it is fringed by another site being developed and a wood that is legislatively bound.

To enjoy the fine view of the mountains and part of the lake, the ground level must by raised by three metres.

The spaces are articulated according to the client’s precise requests, such as the fact that all the main living spaces on the ground floor, with a second floor devoted only to a games room, guest area and the solarium with a heated pool. There is enough space in it for all that is needed for each member of the family to live autonomously.

The plan involves an interchange of open glassed areas and enclosed volumes to house the technical and service zones as well as the closed rooms such as the study. From the entrance, positioned just over two metres from the road, a long corridor crosses the entire main floor, broadening as it reaches the sitting room and dining area.

Villa G has been designed so as to permit all the internal areas to open onto the wood: allowing architecture to become an environmental filter. A central patio increases further the important relationship between inside and outside. The volumes, made up of load-bearing partition walls, are of different heights and emerge at the upper level to construct an artificial landscape that contrasts with the natural landscape of the mountains.

The choice of materials is intentionally restricted; the walls are in pale cement treated with reflective paint both for aesthetic reasons and to protect them. Inside, the insulation is covered with white plaster. Externally the house has been clad in local stone. Opaque aluminium fittings bring a contemporary touch to the project as a whole.

The realisation process merges technologies with Swiss artisanship. The metal sheet subtly working, resolves details related to dripping water. The formworks, thanks to a system created ad hoc for the house, hide the join marks so that the aesthetics of the cement walls are not compromised and to allow the parquet floor to be recessed without the need for a skirting board.