In a remote western corner of the village of Osík, towards the river Desná where the countryside takes over from the dense housing, a modestly-sized house of Minimalist form was built between 2015 and 2017 for recreational purposes. The designers of the project, Prague architects Radim Oblouk and Jan Tesárek, applied the key themes of their work – linkage to the surroundings, the countryside and the “outdoor life”.
The ground-floor building of rectangular floor plan, with an adjoining prism-shaped garage, is set into a gentle slope and features a skillion roof whose slope copies that of the terrain. The designers had originally planned stone cladding for the building, in the end however, in order to comply with the wishes of the investor, the building was clad in wood, a feature which the designers made use of in their other design projects. Thanks to this choice of material, the building does not stand out in its surroundings. Conversely, the natural ageing of the wood helps it to merge with the countryside.
In its concept, the mass of the building is light with regards to its functional demands and prized views from the interior to the surroundings. It is precisely the view out into the countryside together with building's interconnection with the garden that forms the basic principles of the house. The best views are from the main, generously glazed living room, from which the terrace is accessed via a recessed entrance set into the facade. The terrace runs the full length of the garden facade, and continues past the end of the building in the direction of the valley in order to incorporate an outdoor swimming pool. The private rooms of the building are also connected to the terrace through French windows.
The building in Osík thus, has its place among a relatively large number of well-designed weekend homes and chalets being currently built in the Czech Republic, all of which feature lapidary, Minimalist forms, whilst making use of traditional natural materials.
