Hinterhaus
Location: Karlsruhe
Architects: Amunt Martenson, Martin Gjoleka
Photographed on 35mm and medium format film.
Within walking distance of the university, three mini-apartments and two three-room apartments were built in a rear courtyard as a replacement for four garages that were no longer accessible by car.
The building site is extremely small, accordingly the entire buildable area is used as living space. Access is provided in the open inner courtyard as a reinforced concrete structure placed in front of the house – the residential units are entered via terraces.
The house is a mixed construction of monolithic brick insulating block masonry with an inserted timber structure made of CLT solid wood elements.
The use of these shell construction materials allows for direct contact – the shell, despite its somewhat brittle exterior, is always tactilely experienceable and therefore approachable. Agglomerated marble stone slabs were used for the floors and wall surfaces of the bathrooms – through the use of these durable and robust materials, the apartment building withstands frequent tenant changes.