Architect Gustavo Costa calls the home library the “project’s heart.” This central space houses the owner’s expansive collection of about 5,000 books, and acts as a meeting place for friends and colleagues. A Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Red and Blue chair completes the space.

Oman and his partner Andrej Gregoric had the cupboards, stairs, and bed all custom-made. The interior casework provides storage and adds warmth to the concrete walls.

The home's exposed concrete skeleton, wrapped in oak, creates a warm, layered space for living. Oman split the floors by function, with common areas on the ground level, followed by the kids' rooms and then a third-floor suite for the parents.

The library’s entrance features massive panel doors made of tropical freijó wood. Inside, leather armchairs by Jorge Zalszupin accent the space.

Villa Vals is subtly out carved from an alpine slope in Vals, Switzerland. The unique design by SeARCH and Christian Müller Architects provides both a comfortably sized patio, and stunning mountain views while remaining visually unobtrusive in the pastoral landscape. Photo by Iwan Baan.

Created for industrialist Harry Gullichsen and his wife Marie, this private residence fused organic and modern styles and stands as a masterpiece. Curved shapes mixed with a literal forest of wooden columns inside the rural home, creating a flowing environment and harmony between the interior and exterior.

Staircase

North view with the landscape

View from the South West

The simple yet spacious master bedroom opens up to a private terrace.

Rok Oman of OFIS Architects started the renovation of what would become Villa Criss-Cross by tackling a thorny site issue. Since it is located close to the street and perpendicular to the old Roman wall near Ljubljana's ancient fortress, zoning laws require buildings to be set four meters back from the street. By maintaining the original wall and adding steel panels, Oman grandfathered in the new structure and maintained the original orientation.

The home’s living room can be kept open to the elements, or sectioned off with sliding glass walls. A natural concrete slab acts as an exterior barrier, and freijó wood and track lighting define the interior space. C10 sofa by Marcus Ferreira and vintage Poltrona Molé chair by Sergio Rodrigues provide casual seating. Across the partition wall, a Jader Almeida table anchors the dining room.

In the master bathroom, wrapped in custom oak casework, plenty of natural light permeates the steel panels.

A modern rendition of Mediterranean architecture combines with sparse landscaping to create a simple, minimalist feel. The climate, according to the architect, varies from “the warmest African sunny days in summer [to] cold, rainy, and snowy days in winter.”

The geometric front facade of the home is made of Cor-Ten steel, segregated into eight vertical panels. Juxtaposed with its lush natural environment, the front elevation is a minimal and abstract counterpoint to its surroundings. An exterior pool meets the facade at its base.

KLitchen and the Patio

Entrance door with the approach

The view from the living room shows how the exterior allows for plenty of light yet maintains privacy. The structural steel brace outside repeats the cross-hatch motif, and a cantilevered overhang provides a shaded outdoor patio underneath.

Wood, carpet, glass, and concrete: the entryway is a nexus of material and textures.

Perforated steel panels provide a contrasting sense of roughness and lightness, which Oman played with throughout the home's design. The skin adds transparency and graphic energy to the exterior, though Oman did worry about people fixating on the tic-tac-toe element. "It's like calling a rectangular building the Tetris house," he says.

Though the minimal layout maxmizies open space, moments of contrast, such as the wood grain against the perforated metal divider, animate the interior.

Roof terrace of the office level

Nordeast view

The same materials palette continues throughout the entire home. A cohesive marriage of Cor-Ten steel, handcrafted bricks, and marble floors come together at the home’s perimeter. The thick exterior walls were designed to act as an insulating barrier, shielding interior spaces against thermal loss.

Entrance West view

View from the Southeast

Entrance facade

View from the garden on the living area, over the pond

View toward the entrance door and the kitchen

Le Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand, and Pierre Jeanneret designed the LC4 Villa Church lounge for Cassina.

View from the East

North view in the evening

Measuring 18,000 square feet, the house is composed of two linear wings and connected by the kitchen, otherwise known as the “black box.” As in other areas of the house, the architect continued the limestone flooring.

Seen here from the south, Villa van Vijven’s orange facade is meant to mimic the tiled rooftops of Holland’s country buildings, while the building’s horizontal pull echoes the flat landscape.

When OB Architecture arrived on the scene, the turn-of-the-20th-century villa was slipping into severe disrepair.

Enric Ruiz-Geli’s firm Cloud9 designed the suburban house of the future—it also happens to be sustainable. The concrete volumes of the upper and lower floors are independent to allow expansion and compression. Photo by Gunnar Knechtel.