napisala

written by

fotografije photographs by
portret portrait

Damir Fabijani
Stanko Herceg

Vera Grimmer

Zaklonite
u oluji

Shelter in
the Storm

Pogled na malo planinsko selo Leis ponad Valsa, uvenog

u arhitektonskom smislu, u jednom nas asu iznenauje.
Dogaa se to u trenutku kad pred nama na jutarnjem suncu
zabljesnu dva krova pokrivena kriljevcem, kakvim su uostalom
prekrivene i sve druge seoske kue. Meutim, ova dva krova
lebde, a i razmiu se blago jedan od drugog istodobno po
kazujui jasno svoje zajednitvo. U staro alpsko selo iz 18. st.,
koje se smije tako nazvati premda ima samo 16 stanovnika,
no ima i kapelu i gostionicu, Peter Zumthor uao je s dvije
kue od kojih je jednu izgradio za svoju suprugu, a uao je s
potovanjem prema zateenom stanju. Uspostavio je odnos
s vernakularnom tradicijom prilagodivi se pritom uvjetima

A glance at the small village of Leis, above the architecturally

famous Vals, surprises one in a moment. This happens at
the moment when two roofs, covered in schist like all the
other village houses, gleam in front of us in the morning sun.
Nevertheless, these two roofs levitate and move slightly apart,
at the same time clearly showing their unity. Peter Zumthor
entered the old Alpine village dating from the 18th century,
which can be called a village in spite of its 16 inhabitants
since it has both a chapel and an inn, with two houses of
which one he built for his wife. He came here with respect for
the existing and established a relationship with vernacular
tradition by adjusting in the process to the conditions of the
sometimes extreme climate, but also to the possibilities the
landscape offers, and this does not merely imply luxurious
Alpine scenery, but also the vegetation, odours, atmosphere.
Here, where the blue Alpine flowers bloom and wild animals
approach houses, one can feel unity with nature. In Leis, one
has to be reminded of the words of Alvaro Aalto: Architecture
cannot disengage itself from natural and human factors. Its
function is rather to bring nature ever closer to us. Knowing
the anonymous architecture of the canton of Graubnden very
precisely, Zumthor takes over its materiality, while at the same
time interpreting and transforming its constructive principles.
The constructive system of a traditional rural house of four

arhitekt
architect

Peter Zumthor

40

Kue za Annalisu i Petera Zumthora, Vals,

Leis, vicarska

Houses for Annalisa and Peter Zumthor, Vals,

Leis, Switzerland

Peter Zumthor, Kue u Leisu

Peter Zumthor, Houses in Leis

41

42

balansa arhitekt izveo zaista dojmljivo, uvodei vei broj

tradicionalno konstruiranih drvenih kutija koje zatvaraju
sluee prostore: stepenita, kupaonice, spremita, garderobe.
Te kutije povezane stropnim konstrukcijama ine nosivi sustav
kue, a izmeu njih omoguena su ostakljenja u itavoj visini
prostorija. Kod kua u Leisu drvo nije upotrebljeno kao plat
niti kao maska, ve kao masivna drvena graa svih zidova, a
tek je u kontaktu s tlom upotrijebljen beton. Grede iroke 11
cm, visoke 20 cm i duine do 6,60 metara slagane su jedne
iznad drugih, povezane klasinim tesarskim vezovima kao to
je npr. lastin rep. Svi elementi potrebni za gradnju zidne i
stropne grede, prozorski okviri, metalne poveznice, osobito
dugaki vijci, eline razupore i slino sve je to prefabricirano
i pripremljeno za ugradnju stiglo na gradilite. Termiki

up to 6.60 metres long; they are stacked one above another

and are connected by means of classical carpenters joints,
such as dovetail. All the elements necessary for building
wall beams and ceiling beams, window frames, metal joints,
especially long screws, steel bracings, and similar were
prefabricated and arrived on site prepared for installation.
Oven-dried timber had the right degree of humidity: 14%
for the interior walls and 17% for the faade elements. All the
openings, grooves and elements of the joints had already
been made at the right places on precisely specific elements
of construction. Approximately 5000 beams were needed for
both houses and few of them were identical. It was all executed
with the help of computerized machines on the basis of data
from the implementation design. Peter Zumthor talks about

ponekad ekstremne klime, ali i mogunostima to ih prua walls that create some sort of strict box only allows rather
krajolik, a to nije samo raskona alpska scena, ve i vegetacija, small openings. Since one of the architects essential intentions
mirisi, atmosfera. Tu gdje cvate plavo alpsko cvijee, a divlja was to introduce nature and landscape into the house, it was
dolazi do kua, moe se osjetiti jedinstvo s prirodom. U Leisu needed to find a balance between respecting the tradition of
se valja podsjetiti na rijei Alvara Aalta: Arhitektura se ne moe the existing surroundings and new desires and needs. The
odvojiti od prirodnih i ljudskih faktora. tovie, njena je funkcija architect carried out this balancing act truly impressively by
da nam prirodu posve priblii. Vrlo precizno poznavajui ano introducing a number of traditionally constructed wooden
nimnu arhitekturu kantona Graubnden, Zumthor preu boxes that close service spaces: staircases, bathrooms,
zima njenu materijalnost, dok istovremeno interpretira i storage rooms and closets. These boxes, connected with the
transformira njene konstruktivne principe. Konstruktivni ceiling construction, create the support system of the house
sistem tradicionalne seljake kue od etiri zida koja ine and between them, glass surfaces as high as the entire height
neku vrstu krute kutije, omoguava tek manje otvore. Kako of the rooms are enabled. In the houses in Leis, wood is
je jedna od bitnih arhitektovih intencija bila uvesti prirodu i not used as a coat or a mask, but for the massive wooden
krajolik u kuu, trebalo je nai ravnoteu izmeu potivanja construction of all walls, and concrete is used only in contact
tradicije zateenog okolia i novih elja i potreba. Taj je akt with the ground. The beams are 11 cm wide, 20 cm high, and

suena drvena graa imala je valjani stupanj vlanosti: 14%

za unutranje zidove i 17% za fasadne elemente. Svi su otvori,
utori, elementi vezova ve bili na pravim mjestima tono
odreenih elemenata konstrukcije, pri emu je za obje kue
bilo potrebno oko 5000 greda, meu kojima je bilo malo
istovjetnih. Sve je to izvedeno kompjuteriziranim strojevima
na podlozi podataka iz izvedbenih planova. Peter Zumthor
jednako oduevljeno govori o produkciji graevnih elemenata,
kao i o njihovoj montai na gradilitu: ...Stojei ispred staklene
stijene promatramo fluidni staccato rada stroja. Alati su otri,
preciznost je velika. I dalje: ini mi se da se lanjske godine
gotovo itavog ljeta moglo uti tesare kako lupaju kladivima
katkada u ritmu poljodjeljskih maina, zvonaca to ih oko vrata
nose koze na strmoj ispai i zvonkog zvuka crkvenih zvona,
oblinje, vapneno bijele kapele sv. Jakova. Razmaknutih nogu,

the production of constructional elements with the same

enthusiasm as about their installation on the construction
site: Standing behind glass, we watch the fluid staccato of the
machine operating... The tools are sharp. The precision is great.
And further: It seems to me, you could hear the carpenters
hammering, sometimes in concert with the sound of farm
machinery, the tinkling bells of goats grazing further up the
slope and the bright sound of the church bells chiming in the
bellcote of the lime-white St Jacobs Chapel nearby. Legs wide
apart, faces intent with concentration, but breaking into a
smile if one caught their eye, the young men stood on the
walls, hammering down the beams with their sledgehammers,
usually working in pairs to a rhythmical beat. Houses still
dry slowly, wood will shrink in such a manner that the height
of the floors will be reduced by 2-3 centimetres in the next

oris, broj 76, godina 2012

Peter Zumthor, Kue u Leisu

Peter Zumthor, Houses in Leis

oris, number 76, year 2012

43

skice tlocrta: Peter

Zumthor

skice proelja i presjek:

Peter Zumthor

plan sketches by Peter

Zumthor

44

elevation and section

sketches by
Peter Zumthor

oris, broj 76, godina 2012

oris, number 76, year 2012

Peter Zumthor, Kue u Leisu

Peter Zumthor, Houses in Leis

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popreni presjek

uzduni presjek

tlocrt 1. kata

tlocrt 2. kata

cross section

longitudinal section

1st floor plan

2nd floor plan

46

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oris, broj 76, godina 2012

oris, number 76, year 2012

koncentriranog izraza lica, no ipak smijeei se posjetiocu,

ritmiki su udarali po gredama. Kue se polako sue, drvo
e se skupljati tako da e se u sljedeih nekoliko godina visina
katova smanjiti za 2-3 cm. Dakako, svi su prozori, vrata, stube,
instalacije kao i ugraeni ormari pripremljeni za promjene
imanentne drvetu kao graevnom materijalu. Ugodnu klimu
kue osigurava niz malih otvora provienih kliznim vratacima,
kao i slobodno krovite kroz koje izmeu rogova prekrivenih
kamenim ploama i stropa zadnje etae neometano struji
zrak. Mnogobrojni i raznorodni imbenici: krajnja preciznost
projektiranja i prefabrikacije, valjanost izvedbe, veliko teh
noloko znanje, kao i koritenje tradicionalnih iskustava,
omoguili su ostvarenje davnih tenji i snova Annalise
Zumthor. Ona je odavno znala da se osjeaj drveta kao ljuske
za tijelo moe ostvariti samo u kui graenoj od drveta, takvoj
koja e opravdati rijei: biti u domu. Nakon viegodinje
potrage za primjerenom parcelom naeno je zemljite na
kraju alpskog zaselka na 1526 metara nadmorske visine, te
su na strmi obronak, okomito na slojnice, postavljene dvije
srodne kue. Ona vie poloena Annalisina je kua do koje

few years. Of course, all the windows, doors, staircases, and

installations, like built-in closets, are prepared for the changes
immanent to wood as a construction material. The pleasant
climate of the house is ensured by means of a series of small
openings with sliding doors, as well as the free roofing through
which air flows unhindered between the rafters covered in
stone plates and the ceiling of the top floor. Numerous and
various factors: utter precision in design and prefabrication,
proper execution, great technological knowledge, as well as
usage of traditional experiences all enabled realization of the
long-standing desires and dreams of Annalisa Zumthor. She
knew a long time ago that the feeling of wood as a shell for
the body can be realized only in a house made of wood, such
that would justify the words: to be at home. After many
years of searching for an adequate plot, a piece of land was
found on the outskirts of a small Alpine village at 1526 metres
above sea level, and two related houses were set on a steep
slope, vertical to the level lines. The one placed higher is
Annalisas house. One climbs to the house on granite panels
dug into the grass. They pass by the garden with a simple fence

Peter Zumthor, Kue u Leisu

Peter Zumthor, Houses in Leis

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se uzlazi granitnim ploama ukopanim u travu, pokraj vrta s

jednostavnom ogradom za zatitu od divljai, onakvog kakvi
su vrtovi u planinskim selima, gdje povre i cvijee usporedo
rastu. Vlasnica se raduje plodovima svog vrta, rabarbari u
proljee, kelju u jesen. Program kue razvija se po visini
kako bi se to bolje iskoristile prednosti lokacije i kua na neki
nain postala vidikovac. Promenade architecturale etnja je od
jedne do druge slike alpskog pejzaa ograniene prozorskim
okvirima. Sredinji boravini prostor koji fluidno meandrira
izmeu tematskih nia, materijalni je ekvivalent naina ivota,
a na kraju i ivotnih stavova svojih stanovnika. Svi materijali,
ureaji, predmeti, artefakti ove kue, nedvojbeno ukazuju na
estetizaciju ivota, ali sigurno ne u smislu Josefa Hoffmanna,
dakle ne u smislu reprezentacije rituala graanskog ivota. Ova
kua nema potrebe reprezentirati, ne eli neto predstavljati,
ve eli neto biti. ivot u kui ne skriva se, ve je otvoren
prirodi i susjedstvu u malom naselju vana je solidarnost
njegovih stanovnika. U svojoj ambivalentnosti ova je kua uz
svu otvorenost, gotovo stapanje s okoliem, isto tako i zaklon
o emu najbolje govori zimski doivljaj kue. Jednog zimskog

that protects from wild animals, and this garden is exactly what
gardens in mountain villages look like: vegetables and flowers
grow together. The owner is looking forward to the fruits of her
garden, rhubarb in the spring and Savoy cabbage in the autumn.
The programme of the house develops along the height in
order to use the advantages of the location as best as possible
so the house has become a belvedere of a kind. The promenade
architecturale is a stroll from one image of the Alpine landscape
to another, contained within window frames. The central livingroom space that meanders fluidly between thematic niches is
the material equivalent to the lifestyle and eventually, to the life
philosophy of its inhabitants. All the materials, devices, objects,
artefacts of this house undoubtedly indicate aestheticization of
life, but certainly not in terms of Josef Hoffmann, in other words,
not in the sense of representation of the ritual of bourgeois life.
This house does not have a need to represent, it does not want to
represent anything, but it does want to be something. Life in the
house does not conceal anything, but is open to nature and the
neighbourhood in a small settlement, solidarity of inhabitants
is important. In its ambivalence, this house is, along with its

dana, olujni je vjetar vodoravno nosio snijeg tolikom snagom

da su se prostrane staklene povrine pretvorile u apstraktne
slike raznih intenziteta bjeline. U istovremenom osjeaju
potpune izloenosti i zatienosti pokazala se prava priroda
ove kue idealno zamiljenog boravita gotovo arhajskog
karaktera.

openness and almost being one with the surroundings, also a

shelter, and a winter experience with the house best illustrates
this. On a winters day, a gale-force wind carried snow with
such a force that the spacious glass surfaces transformed into
abstract images of different intensities of white. The true nature
of this house revealed itself in the simultaneous feeling of being
exposed and being protected the ideally conceived living
space. With an almost archaic character.

Literatura: Peter Zumthor: Kue u Leisu

Literature: Peter Zumthor: The Leis Houses

oris, broj 76, godina 2012

oris, number 76, year 2012

Peter Zumthor, Kue u Leisu

Kue za Annalisu i Petera Zumthora, donja i gornja kua, Vals, Leis, Graubnden, vicarska
Houses for Annalisa and Peter Zumthor, lower and upper house, Vals, Leis, Graubnden, Switzerland
autor author
arhitektonski ured architectural office
suradnici collaborators
investitor client
povrina parcele site area
bruto povrina brutto area
neto povrina net area
realizacija completed
cijena costs

Peter Zumthor
Atelier Peter Zumthor & Partner
Rosa Gonalves, voditelj projekta / project architect; Lisa Barucco, Karina Bhler,
Mengia Friberg, Simon Mahringer, Rainer Weitschies, Annalisa Zumthor
Annalisa Zumthor
746 m
265 m
206 m
2009
nedostupna / undisclosed

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Your Gateway to Switzerland

Peter Zumthor, Houses in Leis

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