M 住宅丨德国丨Busch & Takasaki Architekten

The residential house in Isenbüttel near

seamlessly integrates into the surrounding neighborhood with its size, silhouette, and color scheme. At the same time, the house stands out due to its minimalist design language and large openings in an otherwise homogeneous facade, giving it a distinctive character.

A nod to the local building tradition of farms and stables is evident in the use of a wooden structure with a pitched roof. The street-facing side of the house appears closed, as the focus is on the spacious interior and the garden. The defining dormer was developed to fulfill this desire, providing additional light to the living room below and allowing pleasant air circulation in the summer months through a chimney effect.

A centrally located core with a bathroom, kitchen, and staircase to the first floor efficiently zones the living areas. These spaces can be separated using sliding doors, eliminating the need for hallways. The living room, open kitchen, bedroom, and bathtub offer a wide, open view of the garden.

The upper floor features a guest room illuminated by a dormer, with its bathroom. The vertical cladding of local larch wood continues onto the roof with standing seam zinc covering, creating a cohesive language in both material and color.

Inside, the focus on essential materials continues, including birch for built-in furniture and the staircase, plastered clay walls, polished screed, and aluminum in the kitchen. The house was largely constructed by the client's family, with significant contributions from their daughter Anni, who supervised the project.