We know not to judge a book by its cover, or in this case a home by its exterior. This 200-year-old stone house in Linescio, Switzerland certainly proves that better than most anything we’ve seen. Even as you walk around the outside and see the crumbling stone walls right in front of your face, you’d have a hard time believing it was recently renovated. However, the farmhouse was renovated only on the inside. The original ramshackle stone-and-wood exterior was left intact. The architecture firm Buchner Bründler Architekten,  designed a minimalist interior shell using concrete slabs and created a very restrained, modern house-within-a-house. “From the outside, the only visible changes are the glass door to the garden and the new concrete chimney stack,” the architects wrote about the project. “Conceived only for summer use, it was possible to do the reconstruction without heating, new windows and insulation and to leave the outer facade in its existing state.” The concrete is meant to “intensify the archaic character and the calm atmosphere of this stone house”. Take a look at this house filled with aesthetic contrasts and enjoy!

Architecture by Buchner Bründler Architekten