Understated yet striking, casual yet refined – this is how Stuttgart-based architects Fuchs.Wacker. describe their new residential project in the Halbhöhen district. The moment you step through the door, you feel it immediately: here, contrasts don't just coexist—they energize each other. The result is a family home that gracefully integrates into the landscape while simultaneously daring to rise above it. The client envisioned a modern, open home for his family: clean lines, flowing spaces, and expansive city views. Yet the site presented an initial puzzle—tucked into a small hollow, hemmed in by older buildings and height restrictions. At first glance, it seemed to offer constraints rather than possibilities. But Michael Gehrmann, partner at the architectural firm, saw opportunity where others might see limitation. He recognized the topography itself as a creative catalyst, an invitation to make the house come alive.

A split-level concept emerged—one that embraces the site's natural depression and draws visitors upward, step by step, until the space suddenly opens to reveal sweeping views across Stuttgart. This moment of arrival is carefully choreographed: a staircase rises from the entrance into the open-plan living and dining area, where expansive glass walls and a terrace frame the panorama. The view transforms from obstacle into the home's defining feature. Inside, the house's philosophy unfolds through clean lines and generous openness—yet it never feels cold. Glass, light-stained oak, and grey limestone work in harmony, balancing transparency with warmth, structure with lightness. The lower level holds the intimate spaces: bedrooms, dressing room, and bath, delineated by black steel frames and glass partitions. The result is a dynamic interplay between openness and shelter. The master bath's focal point is a striking freestanding bathtub in black acrylic glass—almost a sculptural object in itself. It's the perfect sanctuary for unwinding, a place where the mind can drift after a long day.

Light is the house's unsung protagonist. By day, expansive glazing floods the interiors with natural light, creating a seamless bond between interior and landscape. When darkness falls, a carefully calibrated lighting scheme takes over, shifting the mood from intimate to celebratory. But this home speaks in both directions. The façade rises in stepped layers from the slope, as if emerging organically from the terrain itself. Horizontal striations emphasize the stacked levels, imparting calm and balance despite the building's considerable mass. The exterior continues this language of elevation: the pool sits slightly above garden level, edged in grey stone, forming a fluid transition to the bath areas. Architecture and landscape become one topographic experience. Even everyday moments are celebrated here. At the entrance level, one detail captures the eye: through glazing, the client's Porsche Carrera 4S becomes a sculpture on display—a testament to engineering, form, and passion, perfectly integrated into the home's clear architectural vision.

www.fuchswacker.de

Photos:
Johannes Vogt
www.johannesvogt.de

(Published in CUBE Stuttgart 04|25)