House Košťálov is a family house designed by 3+1architekti, was completed in 2013 and covers an area of 155 m2.

Builder´s intention was simple and clear – to build a house in his native village and to farm. The house was supposed to be simple, solid and as far as possible „obvious“ in its place.
We wanted to build on generations of anonymous builders and masons, who worked naturally and confidently, with the stone (mainly limestone and basalt) and with brick, who built here many simply beautiful houses and farm buildings.
At present, there are many such houses, barns, stables, granaries close to destruction.
People do not know the original purpose of these buildings and its original function is not demanded anymore. These places are therefore losing its content and no one cares to protect them. They lose roof, later only perimeter wall remain, then base and then… nothing.
New houses are being built at bright colors, “maintenance free” best “passive” and largely with no spirit. The ability to distinguish the important from the unimportant and the good from the bad is from our experience (not only) with the conservation authority (see, for example, dispute above) considerably weakened.
The house in Košťálov has a simple shape and layout. It’s more of a shelter than a viewpoint or shop window – a wall material and openings on necessary and (hopefully) the right places. Nature is out there, everywhere.
Ground floor, carries on both long sides the skylights that form irregular edges of the roof. These can freely refer to the jagged silhouette of the Košťálov ruins or Hazmburk castle ruins – two dominant “supervisors” of the house. Horizontality connects house to the village, vertical window openings then to the hill Kostalov and further.
Stone cladding of the house is made with stone from a nearby demolished barn. It is a symbolic as well as physicall example of the continuity of this place.
We would be happy if the house became natural part of its surroundings and builder’s family felt here at home as soon as possible.
Operation of the house:
The layout of the house respects usual division of rural houses into three parts. Entrance is from the yard in the south. Given the current demands on the use and operation of the house there is a partial change of contents and proportions of the parts of the layout.
Living room is partly open to the attic space. We assume that the verticality and various types and intensity of natural light, add some festiveness to social space. At the same time in the attic children bedroom arise (also with the help of the chimney, which passes through the area) corners with variable intensity of lighting – from bright areas to dark corners. Herewith we thought of the adventure and atmosphere of old attics.
Yard in front of the house turns smoothly into an orchard, which is defined by wooden buildings (storage, workroom, drying room, outdoor kitchen …).
In the southern part of the land we found a suitable place for a simple buried cellar (fruit, wine) and hayloft.
In the northwestern part of the garden there will be a small sheepfold.
Photography: Pavel Plánička