The ‘Graphic designer’s house’ is a small wooden family house in the suburb of Nagykovácsi, in Budapest. The client expressed her needs clearly and took an active part in the design and construction process.

Twenty years ago, this area was still all holiday homes, but today family homes of various shapes and sizes are springing up all around.

Zsíros-hegy is a mountain in the Buda Hills, close to the Danube-Ipoly National Park and the Buda Landscape Protection Area, an area of ​​mining tradition.

At first sight against that background, the wooden house overlooking the ravine sticks out of the streetscape, as if it were the first representative of some strange, hitherto unknown local architecture.

Its tripartite division played an important role in the design concept. The ground floor contains the living room, kitchen, and bathroom; the first floor contains the bedroom and study; while the “tower” is more contemplative.

The primary functions of the house were concentrated on the ground floor (kitchen, dining room, bathroom, living room, storage), while on the first floor, a large continuous space for sleeping and working was created.

This space, which can be subdivided into smaller rooms if needed, looks directly out at the trees of the ravine to the north through a large triangular window.

Standing in this space, you feel as though the whole house were constructed with this view in mind. The house, however, presents a more traditional aspect on its street-front side.

The “tower” space for contemplation on the third floor is accessible by a ladder.

The goal with the materials of both the internal and external cladding was to maintain a natural look. Overall, it’s the individual solutions and unusual use of materials that make this apparently traditional building contemporary.

For instance, the owner will only oil the external red pine cladding after the wood has dried and greyed.

Architecture Uncomfortable Workshop’s production is crossed by a contemporary approach while sometimes incorporating vernacular and relocated materials and participating in the making itself.