GRAPHĒ: Red Piping Punches Up a Liechtenstein Home Split Into Two Units

Two sets of stairs, a veranda, and a pergola mark an intervention that makes space for more family.

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Project Details:

Location: Schaan, Liechtenstein

Footprint: 1,722 square feet

Architect: Dominic Spalt Architektur / @dominicspalt

Builder and Structural Engineer: Frommelt Zimmerei und Ing. Holzbau AG

Photographer: Willem Pab / @willempab

From the Architect: "In the center of the Liechtenstein municipality of Schaan, a single-family house from the 1960s was converted into a multigenerational house. Despite its hidden location between an old printing house and an office building, the building takes on a new, self-assured presence thanks to precise interventions. A central component of the transformation are three striking red steel elements that set deliberate accents and make the interventions in the existing structure visible.

"The original, oversize single-family home was converted into two residential units, one above the other. While the garden apartment remained largely unchanged, with only minor adjustments such as color accents and small openings for new pipes, the upper part of the house underwent a more comprehensive transformation. The existing bedrooms were retained but functionally expanded through targeted measures. The biggest change concerns the attic: the original attic with a gabled roof was replaced by a spacious living room. This open-plan layout is enhanced by precisely placed windows, creating visual connections to both the garden with its mighty, shade-giving tree and the striking Drei Schwestern mountain range. The transformation of the house was achieved with minimal but precise interventions that respect the existing structure while enabling the new living requirements of multigenerational use. The red steel elements not only serve as structural reinforcements, but also set design accents that weave together old and new. The project shows how targeted interventions and the preservation of essential components can lead to the sustainable further development of existing building fabric."