The Prague Architektonický atelier ABV design studio has done work for several private investors in Litomyšl. Common features for all their designs are markedly modern forms, splendour, and luxury – specifically as regards the choice of materials. After carrying out their initial restoration projects for historically significant houses in the ancient town centre (01-181, 01-202), the design studio won a contract for the design of a residential villa south of the centre on the town's perimeter.
The extensive, two-storey villa with its flat roof features a roughly oblong floor plan with its longer side parallel to the access road. In several places its serene horizontality is enlivened by the pronounced overhang of the mass of the first storey, recessed entry points, vistas onto the garden and the roof pergola with adjustable louvres. The facade design relies on a combination of white renders, marlstone facings and plywood panels. A characteristic feature of the facade facing out towards the garden is a continuous terrace with a roof overhang curved in segments running its full length. The curvature of this section follows the panorama of the river plain with the meandering Loučná river.
The layout of the ground floor is separated into two areas – a private one and a social and working one – both accessible via the main entry hall. The core area of the two-storey house is the dining room with the stairway. The designers incorporated a focal point in the form of a narrow, strictly geometrical bed of a “stream” flowing from under the foot of the stairway. The soffit is clad with mirrors intensifying the sparkling effect of the water. Simultaneously, the stream links the interior with the exterior, towards which it continues along the outdoor living space to the Loučná river.
AW