Villa in Cernica

  • Client : undisclosed
  • Year : 2015

Design for Arxtudio with Arch. Alexandru Muntean from Studio Est and Arch. Calin Lambrache

The lake house was designed as a response to a beautiful competition brief – the client presented us a 10 000 sqm land bordered by a lake to the South and a forest to the North on which he requested a house for an extended family that would take advantage of the sloped terrain.

We imagined the house as a series of sequences that start near the entrance of the plot and finish down by the lake. The house doesn’t fully reveal itself at the time of the arrival and instead it presents itself as a white rock sitting in the green landscape hidden among trees and various plants. The lake is not yet visible at this point. From here a sinking path leads to the entrance. Again the view of the lake is not immediate: one must go first through a vestibule and only after the view opens up with the lake one one side and a hidden artificial pond on the other.

The ground floor forms and L-shape oriented towards the lake with floor-to-ceiling openings that let the landscape flow in. Even the garage follows the same idea and driving in is integrated in the sequence of the house with the lake being initially obstructed only to be revealed later. From the open ground floor a path is passing by the BBQ area and heads down to the boat pier and here the sequencing ends near the water.

The garden is designed as a system of winding paths that define different areas of activities. The top of the hill and the sides are filled with tall vegetation that gives a forest feeling while ensuring privacy. The part between the lake and the house is covered with lower plants that allow for the view but define distinct spaces in the garden.

size: 1100 m2