Camouflaged amidst peaceful surrounds of a southern German village, an opaque facade vertically clad in scorched wood gives way to exposed concrete on the second floor. The L-shaped monolith takes care to complement the form of its neighbouring buildings. On second glance, it reveals itself to be anything but standard. Every material, surface, and furnishing of Villa Mahler is custom-made; at once an essential part of a singular spatial composition and a testament to shared values and mutual respect between its creators. Led by architect Anna Philipp of Philipp Architekten, the residence was brought to life in close collaboration with Eichkorn, the young Black Forest-based atelier and manufactory of Felix Eichkorn and Ruben Rebmann. Grounded in the collaborative philosophy of the Bauhaus, the first manifestation of their collective exemplifies the potential of synergy directed towards the pursuit of enduring beauty, which the trio of collaborators and friends reflect on in an exclusive with Ignant.

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To open the Berlin chapter of his family’s storied architecture practice, bächlemeid, Julian Bächle moved into a former gallery at Kurfürstenstraße 142, at the core of the Potsdamer Straße arts district. Soon after, he activated the semi-subterranean space with an exhibition of contemporary collectible European furniture design. The move exemplifies his expansive view of space-making – partially cultivated under the wings of John Pawson and Virgil Abloh – which slips through the barriers between creative disciplines. On a private tour of the bächlemeid Berlin office, Julian opened up to Ignant on his foray into the city’s art milieu, his no-repeat approach to architecture, and the abandoned building he’d most like to revitalize.

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Some architects take their time embedding themselves into the public conscience, while others burst onto the scene in the splash of a single project. For young Berlin practice Atelier Sunder-Plassmann, that project was Hof Ahmen, a 55m2 glass-walled holiday home on the “gentle landscape” of a working sheep farm in the brooding coastal grasslands of Schleswig-Holstein between the Baltic and North Seas. To accompany an exclusive editorial for Ignant, Founder Malte Sunder-Plassmann shares how a personal project realized in his “night hours” catapulted an architecture office into being.

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Being curious about humans and their habits has proven to be a valuable quality for architects and designers. This is no different for Sam Chermayeff, who dedicates his attention to exploring how we live alone and together. In his practice, he is interested in creating spaces and objects that allow people to merge and meet in new ways. The most ambiguous manifestation of his research is the Kufu 142 building in the center of Berlin. Ignant visited the native New Yorker there to find out how his thoughts and observations translate to his practice.

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The German word Geborgenheit describes an emotional experience that encapsulates a sense of security, warmth, comfort, and being cared for. It is a feeling that typically emerges within a trusted and safe environment. To the architects of Atelier ST, cultivating this atmosphere within the spaces they create is a foundational pillar of their practice and philosophy. With the completion of their recent project, Duplex—a family home close to the city of Leipzig—the studio has created a residence that is blending into its surroundings while simultaneously making a bold statement. In the late summer days, Ignant travelled to Saxony to experience this exceptional building firsthand.

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The Greek word “Τόπος” [topos] reveals a remarkable flexibility when it comes to its applications. While at its core it symbolizes a physical place or location, its exact meaning can vary depending on the context. In literature, it symbolizes a recurring theme, in rhetoric, it equates to a commonplace—a widely accepted idea that builds the base of an argumentation. In all of its nuances mentioned above, however, topos embodies a given and a point from which further dialogues and ideas can emerge. Topos is also the term guiding the creative approach of the Athenian architecture and design studio Block722.

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In the landmark-laden Graben District at the heart of Vienna, the interior architecture of a newly renovated and expanded Hermès store in an 18th-century building honors the arthistorical riches of its city. Centred around a show-stopping travertine staircase in a delicate blend of architecture and craft, tradition and modernity, the store’s renewal was spearheaded by RDAI. The Paris-based architecture firm was founded in 1972 by the late Rena Dumas, whose long-standing partnership with Hermès commenced four years later. Today, the firm is led by Denis Montel and Julia Capp. The project marked their first collaboration with fellow Parisian artist and interior decorator Pierre Marie, who applied his trademark opulent ornamentality to the store’s crown jewel, the salon privé.

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In 1973, architect Ricardo Bofill stumbled upon the old cement factory as he embarked on one of his many nomadic ventures away from Barcelona. The factory’s imposing structure comes into view as one approaches along the highway leading to Sant Just Desvern. The building’s tall chimneys and vast silos exhaled smoke and pollution, and the place was destined to be closed within the next month. After two years of construction work, however, the factory underwent a remarkable metamorphosis, emerging as La Fábrica, the headquarters of Ricardo Bofill Taller de Arquitectura. A manifestation of the architect’s bold vision, La Fábrica has inspired contemplation and awe for the past five decades. Nothing there is about the past, though. Much like its inventor, the unique landmark always faces the future. Today, after Ricardo Bofill’s passing last year, La Fábrica remains an unprecedented laboratory for ideas, continuously reinvented by the next generation of architects and thinkers.

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Laced with the scent of wild herbs, a warm wind brushes the scorched sienna earth. Leaves rustle on the gnarled branches of ancient olive trees. In a semi-circular pool fringed with travertine slabs that gleam in the light, cool water gently ripples outwards. The stark sensoriality of this setting – the last olive grove bestowed with the privilege of building permission on the outskirts of Quesa, a mountainous village in Spain’s Valencia province – demands an equally singular architecture. With their single-family residence ‘La Casa de los Olivos’ (the House in the Olive Grove), completed in 2021, Balzar Arquitectos have created a sculptural shelter that contrasts and harmonizes with the ancient land it occupies.

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A key element in Christopher Sitzler‘s architectural practice is his commitment to analyzing, comprehending, and valuing the unique qualities of existing buildings. Before remodeling a space, he thoroughly delves into a given structure’s contextual background and technical possibilities. An approach that enables him to create elegant and future-proof solutions. We visited the architect to learn more about his work and his process of transforming spaces.

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Minimalist yet rich in texture and vision, ‘Her’ is a beautiful new Balinese, Japanese-inspired, private studio situated in an idyllic spot in the Indonesian province. A meditative and creative escape strongly aligned with nature, the place was conceived with a sense of serenity and harmony at its heart.

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In a 497-acre wild forest, among rolling hills, creeks, streams, and wetlands, New York-based architecture studio Marc Thorpe Design has created ‘Crystal Lake Pavilion’: a stunning concept for a meditation sanctuary in the middle of a sublime, motionless lake.

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In Xi’an, the capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi, the Shanghai-based architecture studio Neri&Hu has designed a dramatic yet minimalist extension in red travertine to the Qujiang Museum of Fine Arts. Bold and arresting, it marries lightness and solidity seamlessly, as well as different, intriguing geometries.

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Deep beneath the ground in the Berici hills of the city of Vicenza, northern Italy, sits the dramatic Cava Arcari, a former quarry reimagined by David Chipperfield Architects into a multipurpose minimalist event and cultural space.

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Sitting on a dramatic slope in a southern suburb of Newcastle, Australia, ‘Bunkeren’ is a sleek and modern five-bedroom home immersed in greenery and boasting views of the South Pacific Ocean. Half-buried and carved out of stone, the residence is a captivating study of concrete textures, forms, and shapes, designed by James Stockwell Architect.

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