MON58 House / Associati

Architects: Associati
Area: 75 m²
Year: 2025
Photographs: EWIIS + Lydia Genecand, Claire Alhanko
Lead Architects: Christophe Alhanko, Loris Guillard, Mikaël Sachs
Category: Residential Architecture, Houses
Design Team: Associati
Municipality: Savièse
Country: Switzerland

MON58 House residential project designed by Associati in Valais transforms an existing annex building on a sloped site into a functional dwelling. The intervention has adapted the original structure, consisting of concrete slabs, lintels, and columns, into a compact home with the integration of a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. The project was completed with a minimal budget and approached extension by doubling the existing grid to the south, resulting in a new simple volume of 5 cubic meters. The transformation maintains the original architectural language through internal insulation, preserving the pre-existing exterior. The material palette features on-site poured concrete contrasted with mineral bricks, expressing both the structure and the infill. The facade presents a structural logic that diverges from conventional norms, producing a composition in dialogue with both the surrounding environment and the tradition of 20th-century concrete works in Valais.

The transformation and extension of an annex building into a housing unit was executed with a minimal budget.

The project addresses an old structure located on a sloping site. The building consists of concrete slabs, lintels, and columns, distributed over two levels with parking spaces on the roof. The upper level measures 5 meters by 5 meters, while the lower level is half as deep. The overall structure recalls Modernist construction, remaining compact and integrated into its natural surroundings.

The project aimed to convert the existing structure into a functional dwelling by incorporating a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. The extension was executed in a strategic and constrained way, selecting a southern addition by doubling the existing grid. This extension forms a simple volume measuring 5 cubic meters.

Because the building is partially embedded in the slope, insulation was applied from the inside. This approach allowed for the preservation of the original architectural expression by continuing the pre-existing exterior language. The on-site poured concrete was treated after the formwork was removed, creating an interaction with the mineral bricks that results in a contrast of materials and highlights the expression of both the structure and the infill.

The structural scheme presented on the facade appears to defy conventional norms, yet it serves a compositional purpose with the original building, where the appearance does not immediately reveal the internal logic. The project uses budgetary, structural, and contextual constraints to develop a construction in dialogue with its environment and with the strong Valais tradition of concrete works from the 20th century.