Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architects

Floating houses sound great in theory, but there are upkeep costs – not to mention the price of parking one in the first place. The parallels end quickly, to be fair, but this core structure of this home does appear at first to float on air – or at least on the thin glass partitions on the ground floor – and despite its unique appearance it was relatively cheap and easy to construct.

Continue reading below
Our Featured Videos
Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architects floating
Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architects back view

The design concept by Kraus-Schoenberg Architects is actually (and rightly) driven far more than by use than by exterior appearance, however, revolving around a lower-level open family living space with individual rooms above separated as needed and allowed to ‘push’ the ceiling below into this area only as needed. Despite the functional aspects of the design, though, it is hard to escape the sense that everything is upside-down.

Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architects glass

Cut into the ground, the first floor gives one the sense of being cozy and enclosed but also provides views out in all directs to the lawn, garden and forest beyond. More limited fenestration on the upper levels grant greater privacy. What is perhaps most compelling is that the materials and construction methods are remarkably simple and inexpensive, yet the net result is a home sure to be unlike any other on the block.

Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architects downstairs
Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architectsbuilt in bookcase library

From ArchDaily:

“This is an affordable prefabricated low- energy house for a young couple and their two children. The family wanted a house which felt like a connected space, but which would also offer individual freedom to the occupants. The building is separated into an upper and a lower part.The upper volume consists of rooms of various heights corresponding to their individual function.”

Haus W Kraus Schonberg Architects library

“Bedrooms, bathrooms, the dressing room and the rooms for the children all require different heights and project into the lower living areas. This common space is organised by these staggered volumes without being interrupted by partitions. Walking around the house takes one through a variety of rooms on the upper level, which are orientated to the garden as well as to the inner atrium.”