Architects about facades

We are working on a project. The façade designs that resonate with the client include the façade styles of half-timbered, Tudor and Provence.

We try on different variations on the house.

The customer opted for a striking look with contrasting half-timbered decor.

What made the facade so evocative? Firstly, the horizontal layout of the decorative cornices; secondly, the treatment of the walls with natural materials in relief; thirdly, the construction of the plinth at different levels.

The most contrasting part of the trim — is the upper, stucco floor with dark wood (half-timber) decoration. On the lower floor, we already used light decors in window frames to make them stand out against the colorful Bavarian masonry tiles. The light color of the stone of the plinth with its interesting pattern makes the house easier to look at individually and as a whole on any floor.

The Geisel Library (the main library of the University of California) was designed by William Pereira in the late 1960s. The appearance was conceived as hands holding a stack of books, but at the building also resembles the crown of a tree.

The image was so memorable that it immediately became the emblem of the university.

This building, which contains around 7 million books, is an example of brutalism in architecture, a movement in the 1950s and 1970s that began in Britain but rapidly became international.

Le Corbusier is considered the inspirer of this trend, because the term "brutalism" comes from French béton brut — «untreated concrete». Le Corbusier used in many of his buildings, which implies not only the absence of a facial finish, but also the preservation of the texture of the technical imprints of the formwork.

The Brutalist traits include functionality, scale, massiveness, geometricity, boldness and complexity of composition, the lack of finishes, and the use of concrete as the main material.

A Dutch house built in 2007.

Even though it's almost 15 years old, it looks current and fresh.

The bottom of the building is finished with dark-colored brick, which creates a powerful, stable, rough look. The top floor, by contrast, is light, in wood, with geometric patterns. Particularly interesting is the band of glass around the entire perimeter, dividing the floors and allowing daylight to enter the house.

In the upper floor, on the other hand, the light is very striking.

You'll also notice the corner window and the original shape of the roof.

In this project we propose to finish the house with Nichiha panels and Cedral fiber cement siding. The trimmings will be decorative metal inserts with graphic pattern on the bay window.

They capture the eye on the ascetic, monochrome facade and refresh it without overstyling the style.

Moscow office of a company that builds houses of glued beam. One part of the facade has a textured, three-dimensional structure, the other part is smooth, with a grid pattern, but no less attractive.

The main idea and message of the facade  — is to show the possibilities and relevance of wood in modern construction. The freedom to choose between traditional architecture and embodiment of bold, innovative ideas.

The first sketch in the new project.

The customer likes the modern style and the light colors. Based on that, we suggest that the main body of the house be finished in several shades of plaster and add rustics on the bay window as a decoration. Make the plinth quite narrow, of graphite-colored stone, and combine it with planken inserts in vertical groups in some places.

Home in Latvia in the small fishing town of Pavilosta.

In the spirit of traditional house-building in this region, the house is triangular in shape, clad in wood, with a roof also of wooden tiles.

One of the house rules in Pavilosta is to maintain the house's signature gray color, which is why we chose Siberian larch, which develops a noble gray color over time.

The architects of Open AD.

In addition to the design of the main house we also create an image of additional buildings (garage, gazebo, guest house) in the same style.

One of our latest projects.

The contemporary house with laconic planken and brick tile finishes. The combination is so good-looking and widely used that it could be considered a well-established classic. The wide balcony band and stoneware plinth enhance the building's horizontal lines, and the The intricate lighting system with different scenarios accentuates the geometric volume.

One of the most instagrammable places in Paris — the Hotel San Regis, was built for private ownership in the late 19th century. Privileged by the Champs-Elysées, it was already bought in 1923 and became a luxury hotel, a center of fashion and pleasure of high society.

In 1985, the current owners renovated the hotel with antique furniture, vintage wallpaper and furnishings.