New Roof Kaeser

This renovation called for the extension of the upper floor of a house, with two new bedrooms, a dressing room and bathroom set on top of the previous structure, as well as for a new roof. Both bedrooms have access to a small roof terrace. In order to make maximal use the space in the lower-height, perimeter areas of the pitched roof, an unusually high roof ridge was employed.

Working with the notion of the continuous ribbon – as was used in the Kirschgarten Gymnasium cafeteria project in Basel – and considering the use of the pitched roof, maximum volume was achieved in a playful way while also creating an unusual lighting situation. Windows inserted in the sheared intersections and shifts of the ribbons allow natural light and views of the sky on the firewall sides of the building, which typically lie in shadow. The project succeeded in nearly doubling the total useable area of the previously very cramped row house with only a minimal budget.