Lake Laguno house is a project designed by JM Architecture in a small village called Brusino Arsizio, in Switzerland. The 3,700-square-foot polygonal glass pavilion and garden has been constructed above a partially buried lower level, almost hidden behind walls on a hill. An engineering feat resulting in an innovative modern artifact, it is unlike any other house in the village. The client desired a home with many windows and gave the architects a carte blanche after that to do as they please.

With Lake Lugano on one side and the Swiss Alps on the other, a glass house on a hill seemed the obvious choice. The site posed numerous challenges of a steep slope, strict building-codes, and surrounding houses, which made a typical solution impractical and undesirable. Instead, the architects carved into the slope and inserted a reinforced concrete structure, which is approached from a private lane leading to a garage on the west.

The underground level comprises three bedrooms, two baths, an office, formal entry, laundry, staircase, and playroom. Rather than facing out toward houses that block the lake view, the bedrooms open onto a garden enclosed by a wall and tall hedges. Climb the stairs to the public spaces of the house and you find another garden on 2 feet of earth atop the lower-level roof. Here the house’s curved glass walls allow for extensive views of the landscape beyond.

Geothermal heat pumps, a rainwater collection system, and radiant heating are some of the environmentally friendly systems used. The house is sculptural, sustainable, and practical. The client, who works from home, says that to witness the lights of the village and lake from the upstairs pavilion each night “is a wonderful experience. I live so much more intensely than ever before.” Via

Visit the website of JM Architecture here.