On a plot of land in Pipera neighbourhood, in the northern part of Bucharest, we have built an apartment block of generously proportioned units with concave façades in a triangular plan. Previously, the site had been occupied by a house with a swimming pool built in the 2000s with neo-classical touches and a lush garden-the sole element with a strong personality in one of the Bucharest’s outskirts’ wealthiest areas. The striking symmetry of the plan is not a pretentious gesture but brings order to the volume resulted from the desire to preserve as much as possible of the rich garden and to protect the old trees on site.
The building sits among the trees, not in their stead.
Working with nature in a national context driven by maximising immediate gains shows that high luxury is nonetheless attentive to place and generously addresses human needs. At the intersection of two pedestrian-un-friendly streets and next to a screen of tall buildings, our intervention allows the public space to draw breath and protects itself from neighbouring gazes using natural elements: water (a fountain and seating area) and a curtain of trees.
The peaceful atmosphere sheltered by vegetation reacalls the generous gardens surrounding Italian manors.