In an outlying district of Prague, biology professors Adam Petrusek and Tereza Petruskova own a little more than an acre in their local garden colony. In the Czech Republic, these green settlements, which often feature a small cottage-like hut, have a tradition that dates back to the 19th century, where city dwellers escape the hustle and bustle to tend a garden.

The couple’s plot, which is more substantial than some, is a short, dreamy walk through the forest from their panelak, or apartment building. It’s home to mature trees, plants, and some food they grow, as well as an old hut for storing gardening equipment. But they wanted something slightly bigger that could accommodate a loft to sleep in. Mainly, they wanted a space that was a little more “user friendly” where they could take a break from gardening.

“One of the most important insights we got from Adam and Tereza is that although they wanted a hut, they didn’t want to spend time in one, they wanted to spend time in the garden,” says Jan Holub, an extended family member and cofounder of Byro Architects, the local firm the couple called on to design the new hut. “The reason they have the garden is to be able to be outside, to spend time in nature.”

With this in mind, Holub and the firm’s other cofounder, Tomas Hanus, came up with the idea of a pavilion. Set on the foundation of the original hut, the circa 200-square-foot pavilion, completed in July and adjacent to another structure the couple now uses for storage, is clad in a blackened timber, or yakisugi, façade that unfolds horizontally and then opens vertically on it’s north facing side. Like a massive secretary desk, the hinged opening reveals a modern wood interior, connecting it with the garden.

The compact but bright interior is made of spruce with some plaster for texture, and the floors are made of larch. On the back wall, which extends 11 feet to the ceiling, there is built-in shelving for books and a ladder up to the loft where the couple can sleep. A skylight, opposite a photovoltaic panel that powers lights and some switches, helps with ventilation to prevent overheating, and supplements light from a porthole window on one side and a square-shaped window on the other.

Byro chose to use a garage-style door (as opposed to a slider, for example), which, when open, functions like a Japanese engawa and allows the couple to sit at the edge of the structure. It also creates additional shelter. “It’s kind of an extension of the pavilion, which is quite small,” says Holub. “It enlarges the space.”

Working with a budget of around $43,000, or one million Czech crowns, Byro’s approach to the materials and design was informed by a shared desire with the couple to match the new pavilion with the greater gardening colony—“they really wanted to keep it like it is,” says Holub—and the handful of huts already present on the plot. Because of the loft, it’s slightly taller than other nearby huts, and also a bit wider.

$856 Stairs	$6,414 Polycarbonate Facade	$5,130 Burnt-Wood Cladding
$10,690 Interior Walls, Flooring, and Ceiling	$1,070 Plaster for Interior Walls	$4,916 Built-Ins (Shelving, Ladder & Loft)
$2,351 Windows	$856 Skylight	$1,500 Photovoltaic Panel
$641 Door	$1,280 Insulation and Protective Membranes	$2,340 Demolition of Old Building
$1,915 Update to Foundation	$2,770 Shutters
Grand Total: $42,729

“They wanted to be mostly in the garden. So we were thinking about how to connect it with the interior of the building.”
—Jan Holub, architect

Still, says Hanus, “We didn’t want it to shine. We knew that it would look already look newer, so we tried to make it fit.” The choice of a charred-wood façade wasn’t because of the Japanese technique’s current popularity, Holub emphasizes, but to blend with the existing huts, which have black or dark brown facades. “And they are imperfect,” says Hanus. “We wanted to work with these kind of imperfections.”

In its closed state, the black pavilion looks like the huts around it, with few or no windows—most are used for storage. When approaching the site, there is a series of four or five “blind” huts. Byro wanted to capture the same feeling with the new pavilion.

“The site has a few dark buildings without windows—it’s a bit unique,” says Holub. “And then you’re approaching the pavilion through a narrow path, and there are huge trees, like you’re going through a tunnel. Then you arrive in front of this new building, again, without windows. We wanted to keep this principle.”

Byro chose polycarbonate for the openable facade since the material is often used in gardens in the area, and because it’s lighter and less expensive than glass. To open it, they fashioned a mechanical pulley system made from iron, steel, and cable wire. Left exposed, it adds interest to the simple black pavilion, as does the sound it makes when it opens. “It’s a mixture of something, like a huge sail moving in the wind and a metal noise from the steel wire cable,” says Hanus.

While the ability to look out of the pavilion came as a surprise to Adam and Tereza—“we didn’t expect to be able to see outside like this,” Adam says—the architects were equally surprised by the atmosphere inside when the panel is closed. “It’s quite cozy, because the polycarbonate creates a very pleasant, diffused light,” says Hanus. “It creates an atmosphere.”

More from Byro Architects:

Plastic Windows, Plywood, and Pluck Bring Together This $56K DIY Cabin in the Czech Republic

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: Byró Architects / @byro_architekti