HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune – All photos and drawings: courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

Architecture, interior design – Hidden just on the tree-line, behind a sandy ocean beach, the topography of the plot is characterised by soft undulation as it is formed by sand dunes conquered by vegetation. Stairs and leveled terraces were necessary for the approach to a house that would touch this nature lightly.

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

“The building allowance was a mere 170 sq m but the wish it was 340 sq m. How to double the area while still adhering to the regulations?” Say at Swedish studio Claesson Koivisto Rune to Archipanic.

“Besides the size of the house, another requirement, in brief, was for maximum privacy while maintaining contact with the beach and the horizon. Or, in other words, great views from inside but little visibility from outside. And the house itself should blend in with its setting as best as possible.”

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

The solution came with an imaginary slicing up of an elongated box and dislocating the parts in alternating, parallel order. Thus, ending up with several outwardly open courtyard terraces – one in each gap. “In principle, like the camshaft in a multiple-piston engine.”

In the façade, each protruding box is a closed wall, while full glazing is used inside the courtyards – sometimes at their deep end, sometimes sideways facing. Besides framing each view, the outlooks become very private.

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

The house has the appearance of a series of individual boxes that, in reality, is one interior connected via a 40-metre-long, end-to-end, central communication axis – functioning as a corridor, but in each space a part of the room.

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

The internally glazed courtyards are perceived as a continuation of each indoor space, doubling the experienced space. Weather permitting can be opened up to a considerable extent to become continuations of the rooms.

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

All photos and images: courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

RELATED STORIES: Discover more Swedish architecture and design on Archipanic…

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.

HOUSE OF MANY COURTYARDS by Claesson Koivisto Rune - Courtesy of Claesson Koivisto Rune.