Since ancient times, German architecture has been famous for its beauty and practicality. As in other countries, it has come a long way from the Romanesque and gothic style to high-tech, from castles and half-timbered buildings to ultra-modern buildings. Thanks to its solidity and economy, German architecture has become the epitome of High Quality and rationality. Some elements old houses– for example, half-timbered timber – is still used in the construction of modern buildings. And university students study the works of the famous German designer Ernst Neufert and follow in their works the standards and patterns he found.
House with imitation half-timbered facade
The 20th century was a turning point in the history of Germany in general, and in particular in design and architecture, marking a consistent departure from the classics. With the advent of the Bauhaus school in the 1920s, modernism gradually replaced other architectural styles. Architects abandoned ornamentation on the facades and simplified the shape of buildings, subordinating it to function. These principles were reflected in post-war architecture, when designers deliberately avoided any historical analogies and preferred to create “from scratch.” The practicality of the building and its efficiency came first - both during construction and during operation. Architects are actively exploring new materials and technologies to improve energy efficiency and ease of home management. In recent decades, smart home projects using automation and computer technology have increasingly been developed.
The architecture of a private house combines traditional and modern elements: simple form buildings and gable roof appeared in a new interpretation, and the zinc roofing coating, long known in construction, spread over the entire surface of the house. Klaus Schlossen Architekten
1. Distinctive features of a German house
Private architecture in Germany is quite diverse. As in Russia, here you can find both ultra-modern buildings and quite traditional buildings. In addition, throughout the country many cities with old houses, which were reconstructed in connection with the new realities of everyday life. If we talk about newly constructed buildings, most of them are being built according to standard designs.
Many German residents live in individual cottages in small towns and commute to the nearest metropolis to work. There are both single-family houses (Einfamilienhaus) and duplexes (Zweifamilienhaus). Having studied German catalogs of private residential buildings for the middle class, we can note general principles designing modern country housing in Germany. Practicality, economy, rationality - these features that distinguish all German architecture as a whole lie at the basis of every private project. This approach is manifested in both planning and façade solutions.
Structure German house simple and concise. No frills, no impractical and economically unjustified decorations and architectural elements:
The shape of the houses is close to a square; additional volumes are often added to it. This could be an entrance group forming a balcony on the second floor, or a garage attached to the house or connected to it by a covered terrace;
The building consists of two floors, or one floor with an attic;
The roof is most often gable (sometimes hipped);
There are no turrets in the architecture of the house, but there are bay windows and balconies.
The building plan forms a rectangle. It is complemented by volume entrance group, serving as a balcony on the second floor. Kampa
Project from ABC of Construction. Architect Alexey Kilevnik.
Stylistics modern house relies heavily on the principles inherent in functionalism and minimalism. In contrast to traditional German half-timbered architecture, functionalism presupposes the complete absence of rigid canons and the use of new possibilities of modern building materials. The main attention is paid to the function of a particular element. Form is determined by function, and façade by form.
Similar principles are declared in minimalism. Buildings in this style are usually built according to individual projects, and are more expressive. Simplicity of execution, lack of decor and embellishments, natural materials in decoration, uniform color scheme, simple geometric shapes- these are features style. Special attention focuses on the effects associated with natural light. Therefore, cottages in this style are characterized by the presence of windows on the entire wall and flat roofs with glass fragments.
All this is reflected in façade solutions German houses, among which we can distinguish common features:
- balconies, terraces, canopies, large roof extensions, which provide a variety of facade solutions that give the building individuality;
The additional volume of the loggia adds expressiveness to the simple building. Juretzka Architekten
- large areas glazing, corner and panoramic windows, double-height glazing;
The large glazing area makes the typical country house a prominent representative of modern private architecture. Landau+Kindelbacher
Lack of decor on the facade;
The use of large undivided planes of a homogeneous material or one color;
Light textured plaster and black wooden planks form a striking contrast. Drevohaus
Space-planning solutions correspond to the structure of the house and are built according to general principles:
The living room and dining room are usually combined into a single space;
The kitchen is most often not isolated by solid partitions, but is separated from the general space by a piece of furniture (bar counter, shelving) or a decorative partition. Lack of partitions and corridors, combining several functional zones in one space creates a feeling of spaciousness, saves usable area. As a result, the prerequisites for interesting interior solutions arise;
Single space of kitchen-living room in the interior. Landau+Kindelbacher
The total area of the three main functional areas of the main room (living room + dining room + kitchen) is approximately 40-70 m2;
The entrance block is separated by partitions (hallway, toilet, wardrobe, staircase);
Ground floor plan in typical house. Kampa
The apparent dryness of rectangular spaces is often enriched with rectangular bay windows - both on one floor and double-height;
On the second floor there are traditionally personal apartments (bedrooms, office, bathroom, wardrobe);
All rooms are separated by partitions, most often of a broken shape, for the functional arrangement of furniture, equipment and more. effective use space;
Everything can be found in the building layout character traits German house. Most of the first floor is occupied by the combined space of the kitchen, dining room and living room. A single flight of stairs leads to the second floor. Complex shape bedrooms and bathrooms allows you to divide the rooms into functional zones. Drevohaus
To move between floors, a single-flight staircase is often used, and a spacious illuminated staircase hall is arranged on the second floor.
A single-flight staircase leads to the illuminated hall on the second floor. Klaus Schlossen Architekten
2. Construction of a house according to a German project
German practicality and rationality often attracts future homeowners from Russia. Simple and discreet, and at the same time very functional houses V German style are very popular. How promising foreign projects are and how they take root on Russian soil is clearly demonstrated by the history of the construction of a “German” house by the ABC Construction company.
House project
A cottage project with a total area of 219 m2, created by a German architectural and construction bureau, was of interest to our potential customer. In 2009, he took photographs of the exterior and interior of an exhibition model in Germany and contacted ABC of Construction with a request to develop an AR (architectural section) and a KR (structural section) and subsequently build a house according to this project.
After studying the photographic materials, our specialists analyzed the architectural and space-planning solutions of the cottage, which the customer liked so much. The rectangular cottage is crowned with a traditional gable hip roof. Symmetrical facades attract with their purity and clarity. The French windows of the first and second floors, lined up in one line, add lightness to the end facades with hipped gables. On the second floor, the windows are decorated with metal balcony railings.
Exhibition example of a German house. Corner rustics in the color of white front boards, window and door frames make the facades festive and elegant.
The “calling card” of the project is two symmetrically located volumes that adjoin the rear façade and together create a U-shaped composition. This is a glazed room in the winter garden, combined with the living room, and covered terrace, the exit to which is designed from the dining room. With their proportions and roof shape, the extensions repeat the canopy over the porch of the main entrance and form a small patio– an isolated cozy space for family recreation in the open air.
A distinctive feature of the cottage's planning solution is a light translucent staircase located in the center of the house. This planning “zest” attracted the customer’s attention.
As the main compositional dominant, the staircase conventionally lines the boundaries of the main functional areas: hall, kitchen, dining room, living room, while providing a view of the entire space. Thanks to the light and openwork structures and the wide staircase hatch, the second floor hall is clearly visible and becomes part of the overall volume, visually expanding it.
An openwork staircase located in the center of the building provides a through view of the entire front space.
According to the designers, the staircase is not adjacent to load-bearing structures and building partitions. Like a sculpture, it can be freely walked around from all sides. Thus, functional object has become a kind of core of the house, around which life processes revolve in the literal and figurative sense.
Lightness, airiness and additional volume give the double-height living room space five window openings, cut into the truncated roof gable. These windows also illuminate the staircase hall on the second floor. This detail makes the interior more diverse, and the façade of the building rich and interesting.
The second floor is an attic, but thanks to the sufficient height of the walls up to the roof slope, the space is cozy and functional. In living areas and bathrooms there are inclined skylights, which not only saturate the space with daylight, but also significantly enliven the interior.
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Dormer windows make the second floor space bright and cozy.
History of construction
For various reasons, the “German” project was not implemented. But the photos of the cottage attracted our other customer. Data design solutions almost completely met his requirements and wishes regarding the organization of the internal space, the composition of the premises and the architecture of the building.
However, the customer wished to make some changes to the design and layout of the building to adapt the project to his needs, Russian climatic conditions and the existing building materials market. The construction process was preceded by a design stage, as a result of which the house underwent a number of changes.
The cold climate required the device warm vestibule, which turned into a covered terrace of the main entrance. For the same reason, they abandoned the stained glass glazing of the winter garden, replacing it with walls with a large window opening. To increase the living space, we had to abandon the second light in the living room. In its place, an office appeared in the attic. For better lighting, five windows were combined into a continuous strip block.
Ribbon windows in the attic provide the office with good insolation.
The terrace adjacent to the dining room has also become warm. A home cinema was installed in this room. At the customer’s request, in place of the living room on the first floor, our specialists designed a relaxation room with a steam room, shower room and toilet. A small redevelopment also affected the group of technical rooms.
Standard windows with a window sill height of 0.9 m instead of French ones - from floor to ceiling - helped improve the heating technology of the house, which is important in winter period. On the second floor, the height of the windows remained the same, but a balcony with wooden fencing and exit from two rooms. Appeared on the facade of the house ventilation unit, lined with stone - it goes into external wall technical room.
The front façade of the house has undergone changes: the height of the windows on the first floor has been reduced, and a balcony has appeared on the second.
For economic reasons and the aesthetic preferences of the customer, our architects shifted the decorative accents in the exterior of the house. Snow-white rustications and platbands were abandoned, and the expensive dark facing brick of the external walls was replaced with light-colored brick. At the same time, to maintain contrast window frames, front boards and the drainage was done in dark colors. For more reliable roof operation c big amount valleys and ribs, it was decided to replace the metal tiles with bituminous shingles.
Despite all these changes, our designers retained the artistic image of the cottage, the space-planning structure and, of course, main feature interior space - a sculptural staircase in the very center of the house. The construction of the building for this project was carried out by our company in 2010.
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The front façade of the house has undergone changes: the height of the windows on the first floor has been reduced, and a balcony has appeared on the second.
We are currently actively cooperating with the German architectural and construction bureau Anke Disterheft. Leading specialists and management of the ABC Construction company often visit Germany, where they exchange experiences with German colleagues, improve their skills, and study new technologies and materials in construction.
We have accumulated a large number of ideas for design and construction country houses based on German standards and technologies. Our office has a lot of original literature on German architecture. If you are interested in the material in this article, we are always waiting for you at the ABC of Construction.
When arranging a home, the issue of the exterior deserves special attention, because appearance a home is an indicator of the taste of its owners. Today designers offer many options decorative finishing façade, capable of making the house unique and distinguishing it from the general range of surrounding buildings. Following newfangled trends, more and more people prefer to use a certain architectural style when decorating houses, characteristic of a particular country.
For those who value simplicity of form, restraint and elegance without frills, we can advise you to decorate the facade of the house in the German style. Such a house will look advantageous due to its solid and original appearance; it will be able to create the impression of reliability and home comfort.
The advantage of the German style is that it can be applied both to an object under construction and to an already finished one, that is, when the walls are erected and the roof is ready. The Germans are a thrifty people, so finishing the facade does not require a large amount of material, which will have a positive effect on the family budget.
Modest German style is traditionally characterized by practicality, economy and original design. The design of the facade can be characterized by the general features inherent in this architectural direction.
- Simplicity and rigor decorative elements.
- No intricate patterns bright colors and details, sculptural decorations.
- A rational approach to the use of materials for construction and finishing.
- Limited color palette.
- Compliance with the traditional canons of Western European architecture.
Walls and roof
Traditionally, a German-style house has the shape of a square or rectangle with smooth smooth walls, painted in plain, discreet colors and decorated with bay windows. These are protruding parts of the house that increase living space.
As for the roof, it is usually gable and made in a brown-red palette. The main material for the roof is tiles. The plinth is finished in natural stone, which is very popular in Germany as a material for the original design of buildings. Thanks to this, the building stands out for its noble appearance.
Small balconies, less often attics, are built as decorative elements. They are decorated without pretentiousness: with tinted boards that are fixed on top of the facade.
Windows and doors
German style is very demanding when it comes to the design of doors and windows. The front door must certainly stand out against the general background of the facade. This is usually the brightest detail that attracts attention.
Windows are made rectangular or arch-shaped. Each window is not a single whole, but several sections separated by special jumpers. In addition, the windows are decorated with wooden shutters, which are performed exclusively decorative function, giving the house a lived-in and well-groomed look.
Half-timbered houses
Half-timbered architecture is a famous style of architecture in Germany. Distinctive feature Such buildings include the presence of a vertical frame with transverse beams and diagonal braces. It is also characterized by curly beam structures. They are painted in colors that contrast with the shade of the walls, giving the house expressiveness and ambience. Curved beams in combination with natural stone finishing or plaster look especially impressive on the walls.
Gothic houses
Buildings that are stylized as Gothic are always distinguished by their originality. In the photo, such houses look like real medieval castles. This is facilitated by the pointed roof and vertically elongated windows, which visually make the entire building taller and more presentable.
If you are looking for a light and easy to decorate style, then this is German.
It is chosen by many people because it differs from all others in that it is simple and practical.
In this article you will learn how to decorate a house in German style simply, but at the same time with designer taste.
Kitchen decoration
The kitchen room is where mostly women spend a lot of time. For the same reason, there should be everything that will make it more comfortable and cozy.
For the German style, cheap and not practical furniture and disorder, everything must be in its place. It is best to choose furniture from durable and natural materials that will have high functionality.
Special characteristic – light walls and the floor is glossy. As for curtains, it is better to choose ones that are not dark and that will let in daylight. If desired, you can use tulle. You can attach one not very large chandelier or several small LED lamps to the ceiling.
Should look strict and no less modern Appliances for kitchen.
If possible, build large equipment into kitchen cabinets. For decoration, choose fresh flowers, good option they will be placed in pots.
German style in living room design
The living room is one of the most important rooms in the house, so it should be decorated carefully and, of course, with taste.
Use only natural materials - a table with a glass top and wooden legs, as well as a wooden cabinet. Here the walls will also be light, but the floor should not be very dark; you can put laminate on it.
The living room will be cozy and spacious if you decorate it with not a lot of furniture. It can only be a sofa or a few armchairs, not large sizes table and wardrobe.
You can decorate a room with different items. It could be like family photos on the walls and large vases on the floor. You can place small decorative pillows on the sofa.
As stated above, there is no need to hang heavy curtains that will not allow light to pass through. A simple and transparent tulle will be enough. To decorate the table, choose a light-colored tablecloth.
When decorating apartments in the German style, it is worth saying that the living rooms there are often somewhere in the middle of the room itself.
For this reason, there may not be enough daylight for full illumination. In this case, you can choose a sconce attached to the ceiling. Small spotlights will slightly lose the atmosphere of the German style, so it is not recommended to choose them.
Bedroom style
We also spend a lot of time in the bedroom - relaxing, enjoying sleep. As in other rooms, it is not appropriate here extra furniture, which has no functionality.
Furniture in the German bedroom style should be chosen only from durable and natural materials.
In the bedroom it is enough to have a spacious bed, a small chest of drawers for linen, and cabinets near the bed. You can also place dressing table and a chair.
This room should be bright, so choose pastel shades of wallpaper, white ceiling, delicate light furniture and laminate flooring, also light.
In the bedroom, add a picture of a natural landscape to the wall. The window can be decorated with transparent tulle.
Attach a chandelier or several to the ceiling spotlights. You can also place lamps near the bed, on the bedside tables. Place small soft rugs on the floor for comfort.
How to decorate a bathroom
When decorating a bathroom, keep in mind that there shouldn’t be too many shelves and cabinets. Choose simple sanitary equipment, no unnecessary decoration.
Non-dark tiles are used to decorate the walls and floors. Bathroom design German style interior should not be rebooted color scheme, maximum three colors.
If you have chosen the German style for decorating your home, you will definitely feel comfort, freedom and coziness.
Photos of German style in the interior
Half-timbered architecture is immediately recognizable. It is associated with the houses of Germany and Europe. Often the roofs in such structures are covered tiled roof. Today, this canonical type of residential buildings is used as a design delight. On the other hand, it is a symbol German quality. But in fact, buildings from the 15th-16th centuries have been preserved in Germany, which are still in use today. Therefore, many argue that houses using German technology have an increased service life.
History of German houses
In fact, the famous German houses, the photos of which are fascinating, appeared for a reason. The designs of buildings in which wood is the main material are typical for both wooded areas and coastal areas. In the countries of the Baltic and North Seas (Germany, Denmark, Great Britain, Holland, etc.) there were many skilled carpenters who built high-quality ships. These masters knew how to build correctly reliable design made of wood, so we started building the structures.
To build the first houses, pillars were dug directly into the ground, and connecting beams and rafters were laid on top of them, after which the construction of the roof began. Of course, after 15 years, the pillars rotted relatively quickly. Over time, they began to be installed on the prototype of a stone foundation - huge boulders previously dug into the ground. The service life of poles, and therefore structures, has increased tenfold. But it was necessary to compensate for the connection to the ground with many transverse slopes, rods, tightenings and connections.
For skilled carpenters, such a connection was not a problem. They were carried out according to naval methods and techniques. Today, all connections have been replaced by simpler ones, using steel fasteners (anchors, screws, brackets, threaded rods).
Design Features
In fact, a German house is a special frame made of elements of large and medium sections, with the cavities of the external temperature contour filled. The remaining elements of the structure (roof, foundation, partitions, walls) can be made in the same way as in other houses.
A reliable frame is not a problem for skilled carpenters. But filling the sinuses is difficult task. After all, the quality of the walls, and consequently the fate of the entire structure, depended on this. At that time, the sinuses were filled with adobe or adobe material. This material has been used on all continents. Today it is also becoming popular and is used in green construction.
Grooves were cut into the beams into which a paired or wicker lattice of rods was inserted. Saman was applied to it. Sheet material for exterior finishing building was not invented at that time, and using boards for this purpose was too expensive. Therefore, the buildings were plastered, but first apply the solution to wooden beams it didn't work out.
Therefore, the walls remained with visible beams, which later became the hallmark of German houses.
Distinctive feature of a half-timbered house
Many old German houses have one distinctive feature. If you look closely, you can see that each new floor of the house hangs over the previous one. At first glance it looks unusual. The explanation for this design is quite simple. In coastal areas it often rains and precipitation, flowing down the walls, water fell on the lower floors. Their walls were getting very wet. The upper floors dried quickly due to the wind and sun. The lower ones could rot due to moisture, and this is unacceptable. That's why upper floors brought forward.
This feature of construction became ineffective with the invention in the construction industry of high-quality waterproofing materials. Modern facades, foundations, walls and wood are reliably protected from frost and moisture. Therefore, modern German houses have completely smooth planes walls
The changes also affected roofing material, due to the weight of which it was impossible to carry the visor even half a meter. Today they use lightweight sheets that can remove water from the wall by a meter or even more.
Canadian technology or still German?
Old German houses can safely be called the basis of all technologies frame structure. After all, in modern construction By frame technology Almost everything was repeated. There are no transverse slopes in the systems. Today, experts only use a different thickness of the material (modern beams have become a little thinner). Many believe that it is Canadian, but finished structures are often called both Finnish and German. And this is fair, because buildings were constructed using this technology even before the discovery of America.
Today at frame houses It’s hard to see old European houses, because they have the characteristic advantage of covering with high-quality sheet material and finishing the building on the outside. The design of the structure was improved, and nature also benefited, because wood consumption was significantly reduced.
Ancient house-building method and modern materials
Thanks to the sheathing of a solid OSB sheet, the structure has become even stronger, stiffer and more reliable. Now there is no need to use powerful beams and racks at the initial stage. Exterior decoration And sheet material reliably protect wooden frame from negative influences environment: solar burnout, weathering, freezing. Thanks to such protection, the service life of the structure has increased significantly.
A good German house has a calling card - visible beams of the structure. Today they are used only for decorative purposes. Of course, walls made of adobe and clay are a thing of the past, and the space is filled with high-quality and environmentally friendly insulation. Today straw is also used as filler.
Previously, finishing the sinuses was a problem, but today this process takes as much effort as interior decoration walls Thanks to the use of modern facade putties, this process is easy and simple.
The frame of the structure remains a model of the reliability of the entire structure. Metal elements helped speed up and simplify the installation process of a German house.
Conclusion
A German house is a high-quality, reliable structure. Its construction is practically no different from other houses. Remember, having decided to build such a house, you will be able to fulfill your dream and live in
