House on House, extension
  1. Home
  2. Architecture
  3. House on House extension

House on House extension

Raimondo Guidacci

House on House, extension
By Francesco Pagliari -

Trofarello is a low-density suburb of Turin characterised by relatively small traditional buildings, each with their own little plot of land. The extension to this house certainly introduced new elements, especially to overcome the zoning regulations and increase the size of the roof and to produce a highly expressive, practical building. The roof extension has a bedroom with an ensuite bathroom. The extension has a fir pillar and beam structure and occupies only a section of the roof, surrounded by two terraces on the sides, each protected by a largely transparent, light see-through metal railing. The defining visual aspect of the addition is the use of Rheinzink panels with vertical and oblique ribs, marking the structure out from the surrounds. Local zoning rules regulated, for example, the distance from the road and the adjacent buildings (a distance that has to include the encumbrance of the external wall insulation), effectively becoming the key determiners for the volumes of the roof extension. The borders might have largely been dictated by law, but the architectural approach is evident in the placement of the volumes where a parallelepiped is anchored to the flat roof and merges with a prism that mimics, precisely through its placement, the sloping eaves of the original roof. The sidewalls have no windows and access to the side terraces is via doors on opposite sides cut into the zinc-titanium cladding, breaking the ribbed pattern. The front and rear sides have horizontal bands of windows, although these are at different heights on the opposing sides, creating a complex natural light dynamic as the sun's rays shine in from different angles.
The uniqueness of the structures lies both in its practicality and the layout, with clear lines and cladding.  The volumes form a striking, elegant composition that is an innovative solution to merging a traditional structure with a contemporary addition. The architectural skill lies in matching the differences between simplicity and complexity to allow the organic, sequential development of a house on top of a house.

Francesco Pagliari

Location: Trofarello, Torino
Client:  Private
Completion: 2014
Gross Floor Area: 30 m2
Architects: Raimondo Guidacci
Design Team: Giancarlo Ambu, Nadia Saglietti, Marco Chirico
Works Management: Raimondo Guidacci
Contractor: Ferro Antonio

Suppliers
Titanium Zinc Cladding:
Rheinzink

Photography: © Beppe Giardino


Raimondo Guidacci
Raimondo Guidacci (Foggia 1968) graduated in architecture at the Venice IUAV (under Carlo Magnani). At the same time he passed out of the Benedetto Marcello Conservatoire of Music in Venice.
In 1998 he opened a professional in Turin. From 1995 to 2005 he teamed up with Emanuele Levi Montalcini at the Turin Polytechnic Architecture Faculty, Architectural Design Laboratories, where he was assistant to Guido Martinero from 1996 to 1999.
Some of his works have been featured in specialist journals and awarded prizes in architecture, including certain exhibitions and shows. Publications of note: the Casabella Almanacchi; the book edited by Marco Mulazzani “Italian Architects, the new generation”, published by Electa in 2006; as well as specialist reviews like The Plan, Abitare, Costruire, D’Architettura, C3. 
The Due Case in Puglia project was selected for the 2004 Cosenza award and the 2007 Barbara Cappochin award in the category of best international work. It won the INARCH/ANCE award in 2008 in the young architects category and shared equal first place in the abitareilmediterraneo award in 2011.
Guidacci’s work featured in the Italian Pavilion at the XIV International Architecture Exhibition at the 2014 Venice Biennale.
His book Una Ragazza che Suonava was recently published.

Keep up with the latest trends in the architecture and design world

© Maggioli SpA • THE PLAN • Via del Pratello 8 • 40122 Bologna, Italy • T +39 051 227634 • P. IVA 02066400405 • ISSN 2499-6602 • E-ISSN 2385-2054