When a family of four acquired this residence on the outskirts of Schildgen in Bergisch Gladbach, it presented an idyllic setting—situated on a generous lot with mature trees and nestled near a protected landscape area. Yet the property also conveyed a somewhat confusing impression: the composition of its building masses lacked coherence, appearing fragmented and spatially incoherent overall.

Built in 1930, the house was initially conceived by Ernst Nolte (1897–1973), an architect renowned for his post-war buildings in Cologne, as a single-story summer residence. Already in the following year, he planned an expansion on the sloped side of the site: a two-story cube and a stair tower were added to provide the building owners with a permanent residence. Cologne architect Wolfgang Rettberg, commissioned with the renovation and redesign, unified the three volumes for the first time into a coherent facade composition with harmonious proportions. He adapted the spatial program to the individual living requirements of the owners. The family desired that the ground floor be opened up generously through larger windows. Newly inserted window facades with delicate steel profiles standardize the lintel heights in the kitchen-living area and living room. On the ground floor especially, the slender profiles enabled the creation of extended "sitting windows." All renovated window openings were designed according to the proportional relationships of the golden section. Combined with the white, smooth-rendered facade and the delicate roof railing, this creates a markedly clearer facade composition that draws its design language from the New Building movement of the twenties. The spacious living room with concert grand piano is occasionally used for intimate concerts with an audience. Through a vertical skylight cut into the building volume, the ground floor space establishes a visual connection to the sky: once a year, the spectacle of the summer solstice can be experienced here. The owners' sleeping quarters were ultimately constructed as a fully transparent glass cube with solar shading on the roof terrace. At night, the starry sky becomes within reach.

www.architekt-rettberg.de

Photography Credits:

Achim Bednorz
www.achimbednorz.com

(Published in CUBE Cologne Bonn, 04|21)