Villa Lokaator

Situated near a former Soviet closed military town, Villa Locator deliberately evokes the theme of its desolate surroundings. The client wished to reinterpret the surrounding military environment and keep the bulky 65 centimetres thick calcium silicate brick walls of an old army barrack as load bearing external walls. Renovated brick walls are visible in the interior of the house.

Due to the building restrictions of this seaside plot, the barrack determined the constrained size of the groundwork for the new building. Two prominent “locators” i.e. protruding consoles with individual staircases reaching out for the sea enlarge the living quarters. 

The building has two contrasting facades: a glazed sea view facade with a terrace that resonates with the environment and a hermetic street facade with small vertical window slits to let in the southern sun. The rough aesthetic of concrete has been fully exploited in the general structure of the building.

On the inside segregated spaces of a barrack have been replaced with an open plan living area. Rooms are placed at different levels where moods change in accord with natural light creating  zones of varying energy. Letting sunlight into the open-plan living area from the bunker-like southern enclosed elevation gives warmth and light airiness to the interior. This is achieved via indirect light coming in from the projecting dormer windows and strip glazing, which makes the room glow.