Transformation of the Regional

architects Dušan Kajzer, Vojka Štrukelj, Ricardo M. Tomšič
project Apartment House, Ljubljana, Slovenia
written by Vojka Štrukelj

 

The building shown represents a realization of the characteristic approach to housing construction for the market in the post-socialist period when on the one hand surplus capital and on the other hand modest production created business opportunities for building on every available location, especially in the vicinity of the capital city. 

 

In this particular case the location is a part of a setting that is an interesting contact area between the Ljubljana valley and the Golovac hilly woodland area. The traditional rural area has been degraded into a suburban area. Several decades of uncontrolled housing construction resulted in architectural production without any architectural ambitions or any urban concept worth mentioning. The formal disharmony of a new building with its surroundings is a positive trait in such a situation. Some regional characteristics may be traced in the use of the materials. The facade brick laying pattern enables natural ventilation of garages, and it is reminiscent of the farm-building construction technique. The use of timber on the facade tries to restore, the unfortunately forgotten technique in Slovenia; which for ecological and economic reasons should be stimulated.