HONEYCOMB APARTMENTS

This project is the winning entry for a competition to design two tourist housing blocks; Mostly for handling the economic, rational and functional issues, its ratio between gross vs. saleable surface area and the flexibility of the plans. When signing the contract it was necessary to prepare construction documentation for the building at the cost of 600€ per m2 of net surface area. The brief required 30 apartments of different sizes and structures with the given urban plot of 60 x 28 meters. The apartments are small, with minimum-sized rooms according to Slovenian standards and without structural elements in between, thus providing flexibility and the possibility for reorganization. The housing blocks are set out on a hill with a view of Izola Bay on one side and of the surrounding hills on the other. Since the blocks are subject to a Mediterranean climate outdoor space and shade are important elements. The project proposed a balcony for each apartment, thus providing an outdoor intimate space, partly connected with the interior, shaded and naturally ventilated. A textile shade protects the balcony and hotel apartment from prying eyes, yet due to its semi-transparency still allows the owner to enjoy the views of the bay and the strong colors create different atmospheres within the hotel apartments. The small rooms appear visually bigger than they are because the textile shade creates a perspective effect which connects part of the exterior with the interior. The balcony modules are designed as an efficient system, providing shading and ventilation for the hotel apartments. Textile elements fixed on the front of the balconies block direct sunlight and accumulate an «air buffer» zone. In the summer the hot accumulated area behind the shadings is naturally ventilated through perforated side partitions of the balconies (10 cm holes). In the winter the warm air stays in the area and provides additional heating to the hotel apartments. Boxes at the side of each balcony also provide room for air-conditioning units.