GERJI MICRO HOMES

ADDIS ABABA 2017-2019

This apartment building is located in a quiet neighbourhood in the south of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, close to the International Bole airport. The client, a coffee producing company asked for a #housing solution for its staff in a spiraling rental market environment; providing safe and comfortable homes for employees. The building contains 13 individually designed micro-apartments ranging from 12 to 68 sq sqm, a basic private space. Additionally, a strong focus is placed on #common areas: at ground level, we experimented with a small coffee forest and other endemic plants; the garden is designed to be a part of the street scape so neighbours can enjoy the green oasis. At the common rooftop, we enriched the social interaction between the parties, by adding water-saving washing facilities, thermal hot water tanks for all inhabitants, sports facilitie + #benches for sun sets with a City panorama and bbqs.

Extended back up systems for power+water cuts are provided, as water access seasonally fails for several days; a thermal collector is placed on the roof top to allow for energy independent hot water during day and night. The back up electricity circuit provides basic comfort in times of power cuts. External materials are #locally sourced, recycled bricks from demolished houses; interior cupboards, beds and furniture are designed and manufactured locally. Specific technical furniture (lighting, kitchens and sanitary objects are imported to ensure quality and longevity.

Design team: Julia Mauser, Brook Teklehaimanot, Mike W. Negatu
Contractor: Mafer plc, Structural Engineer: Michael Kebede

Photography: Michael Tsegaye

MAYFAIR REAL ESTATE

ADDIS ABABA - 2017-2022

Mayfair Realestate houses 35 apartments in the center of Addis Ababa; a collaboration of investors aiming at simple yet unique living spaces for contemporary Addis Ababa families. The building is designed to #increase public circulation space including a gym garden inside the main staircase, ample lobby spaces and health facilities on the roof top garden.
Design team: Julia Mauser, Mike W. Negatu

HOPE DENTAL CLINIC

KIGALI, RW - COMPETITION

On a line between a densely sprawling city center + peripheral green belts, providing food and comfort to the city. HHOA will tap into this infrastructure and create a place of natural comfort and calmness – through intelligent and cost-effective construction and landscaping. - A space to give and receive, a feeling of safety.

The clinic crafts three types of spaces: indoor –dust free and welcoming, roof – covered, intimate circulation space and c) open meditative gardens. Buildings are arranged for circulation routes to be short, covered and energy efficient – providing a system for natural light and ventilation where needed (9-month rainy season). Most of hallways are open towards the interior gardens, that are extended to the façade: mesh wires help the crawling plants - growing spaces of intimacy, joy and always changing experiences.
The proposal focuses on simple construction techniques - cost-effective design elements: #minimizing excavation and semi-open circulation spaces to reduce costs where possible .

A layer of a seasonal changing landscapes gives the Hope Center healing power and playfulness for the everyday: Three skins of #green courtains divide indoor + outdoor activities, a corridor of beans, pepper or cat’s claw creepers; placed primarily along the west facing (afternoon sun); the green curtain cools down the circulation and resting zones; allows wind to circulate to create a pleasant climate for staff and all visitors. At the operatory, the mesh and creepers additionally are placed act as teasers, forming a playful views and shadows from a patient’s perspective; naturally pigmented paints ranging will give each training zone an own color coding, by painting the metal structures accordingly.

Design Team: Julia Mauser, Maraki Getachew

JAMBIANI ARTIST RETREAT

ZANZIBAR, TZ - UNDER CONSTRUCTION

The Jambiani Artist Retreat is a unique architectural gem that blends seamlessly with its lush surroundings, offering three distinct apartments to provide artists and nature lovers with a serene and inspiring living experience. Nestled between abundant coconut trees and infused with the invigorating sea breeze, the retreat creates an intimate connection with nature while providing an idyllic space for creativity and artistic expression.The architectural design is centered around preserving the natural beauty of the site. The retreat is low-rise and incorporates local, sustainable materials like coral stone, thatch, and wood, to harmonize with the traditional Zanzibari architecture. The buildings are carefully positioned amidst the coconut grove, minimizing the impact on the surrounding environment while maximizing the view of the forest.

The artist apartments are designed to cater to the individual needs and preferences of the occupants while maintaining a cohesive architectural simple language. Each apartment is spacious, utilizing large windows to merge the interior + exterior spaces. This design element allows natural light to flood the living spaces, creating a sense of being surrounded by the forest even when inside.The orientation of each apartment is carefully planned to maximize the surrounding palm forest views. Large floor-to-ceiling windows frame these views like living paintings, blurring the boundaries. From shared rooftop terraces, artists can enjoy breathtaking panoramas of the Indian Ocean.

The Jambiani Artist Retreat aims to provide a haven where artists can immerse themselves in nature, embrace the sea breeze, and find artistic inspiration amidst the lush garden and surrounding forest. This architectural design allows artists to create, rejuvenate, and connect with their surroundings, fostering a harmonious relationship between art and nature. Environmental sustainability is an integral part of the design. The retreat incorporates rainwater harvesting systems, solar panels for renewable energy, and passive cooling techniques to reduce energy consumption. Local materials and construction techniques are used to minimize the carbon footprint of the project, promoting eco-friendly living.

MULE REAL ESTATE

ADDIS ABABA - UNDER CONSTRUCTION

MuleTower is a cutting-edge architectural project located in the heart of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in the vibrant area of Welo Sefer. Standing tall at 19 storeys, this mixed-use building is designed to be a new urban center, combining commercial spaces, state-of-the-art offices, and 95 modern spacious apartments

Unlike traditional towering structures, MuleTower seamlessly integrates with its surroundings. The building's design encourages connectivity with the neighborhood rather than isolating itself.
The tower represents a significant leap in architectural innovation and community-centered design. With a thoughtful blend of commercial spaces, state-of-the-art offices, and modern apartments, the tower is set to redefine the urban landscape of WeloSefer and Addis Ababa. Embracing local culture, art, and nature, MuleTower aspires to be a welcoming landmark that beckons visitors and residents alike to explore and experience the heart of Addis Ababa's vibrant urban center.

Design team: Julia Mauser, Maraki Getachew, Mikiyas Hailu

CREATIVE CANOPIES

OROMIA, PRE-SCHOOL COMPETITION, 2021

From afar, creative canopies is a visually explosive center of attraction with its colorful roof and shades: a learning center for the community, a #place for interactions: where the elderly meet for a chat under a tree, where young women and men get a platform for trainings and classes; where children are in a safe, inspirational and inclusive environment. - As a tree protects all life under its umbrella, here the school unites all generations to actively discuss the future of their children under a lightweight and inexpensive roof.

Our focus is on a designated outdoor space, the central fig tree for informal gatherings inviting the community to actively engage the construction process.

Design team: Julia Mauser, Maraki Getachew

HEVEN HOUSE

TORONTO, CN - DESIGN PROPOSAL W/ ADIAM SERTZU

Heven house is located about an hour car drive from Toronto, Canada. The house is designed for a family that wanted to build a live and work space in the countryside away from the noisy city centre. It is primarily a weekend retreat for family and friends yet the space allows for a permanent residence during quiet working periods. The project developed from the idea of a continuous space, with an 360-degree visual exchange between the interior and the exterior landscape.

Design team: Adiam Sertzu, Julia Mauser

At its core lies an internal patio, safe for children and protected from the harsh winter winds. the entire circulation is wrapped around it to allow as much light and air into the building core as possible. this circulation space also works as a climatic buffer zone, between the actual living rooms and the open interior.
Two opposing entrances allow for the separation of the private family use and the more public office area. Delivering and collecting goods is possible at an elevated loading dock at the ground level.
The house is wrapped in a wooden vertical cladding pattern, a material and geometry that blends into the high-rise birch woods surrounding and camouflaging it.
Design Team: Adiam Sertzu, Julia Mauser

AXUM WOMEN COOPERATIVE

AXUM, DESIGN PROPOSAL W/ SWA STUDIO

The site is centrally located in the new large western district of #Axum. The urban layout is relatively densely planned, strictly orthogonal and provides individual "spots" for public or social facilities. The plot is a square of 56/56m.

The building complex for MAKEDA BRIGHT AFRICA acts an stand out island within a dense and rigid urban framework of Axum.

Quarry stone wall opens up to the various functions, broken up by colored gates, as well as peepholes, and offers occasional glimpses of the interior. The main functions find space in individual light cubes, which contrast with the wall through design and material, "break through" it and thus become readable. Due to the loose arrangement of the buildings, different spaces are spanned inside the homestead, assigning the individual functions their own undisturbed area and allowing for a very situational design.

Design team: Sebastian Wiedemann, Julia Mauser

SWISS EMBASSY IN ADDIS ABABA

COMPETITION W/ SUTER PLUS STUDIO, CH 2019

Urban setting
The siting of the two volumes with their different uses and corresponding expression, within the formative enclosure, offers a lot of potential for the exterior space and the spatial relationships between them. The seven-meter high earthen wall, facing the street, protects the site from the noise and visibility of Jimma Road, thus revealing its building qualities to the public. The office with its simple, clear volume forms a representative facade parallel to the street and the protective wall. In the connection to the other wing, the passage leads to the wider complex. Here opens the garden and the opposite pavilion-like residence, with its diversified volume. The dialogue between inside and outside, the different uses and individual spatial references shows in the center, the garden, the high quality.

Landscape
In the access zone between the street and the chancellery, plants/mosses are planned that can both bind the dirt and noise and at the same time not form a visual obstruction in the zone. These will be placed systematically, linearly along the facade to the entrances, guiding the visitors to the interior of the chancellery, as well as to the focal point, the garden, and further to the residence.
The rest of the site, free of emissions, is designed as a generous garden, with different qualities, and can only be experienced on foot. The altitude of the property (approx. +2350m.a.s.l.) lends itself to the creation of an ethio-alpine space, in which various useful, medicinal and ornamental plants create places of tranquility and concentration. Within the residence, in the courtyard, the garden is complemented by another green oasis. This, in its cross-like form, serves as a connection and at the same time forms the gradation of privacy of the spaces.
Lot 2 will be transformed into a colorful, somewhat wilder orchard, with avocado, mango and papaya trees, after construction is complete. Thus, the area becomes usable, without major intervention.

Team: Suter plus Gmbh (www.suterplus.ch) Deborah Suter (team leader) Arthur de Buren, Julia Mauser