Dekleva Gregorič architects

Production: Items collective

Located in the neighbourhood of Krakovo in Ljubljana, this extra small house became a pied-à-terre in the city for a couple that otherwise lives in the countryside. The constraints, predetermined by its location, are what came to define the project: the historic neighbourhood of Krakovo, located just a few steps from the centre, has a protected status, intended to keep its village-like character. The house was originally a mere service building, and with its volume now predefined by law, the challenge was fitting all the features of an urban holiday home into 43 m2. Since the house faces north, the majority of the alterations served to bring more direct and indirect sunlight into the space. In keeping with the heritage protection rules, one of these interventions was a light shaft, turned towards the sky, as well as a large wall-sized sliding window opening into the intimate atrium. With the raw characteristics of a service building as reference, the materials used both indoors and outdoors appear rough and neutral, with fibre cement panels in their primer mode used on the roof and the yard facade, terrazzo featuring extensively from the floors to the kitchen sink, as well as iron, plywood and felt.