Your primary residence in Arni/Gurtnellen – in liberating architecture.

With the construction of our three residential atelier houses, Mittelarni, part of the municipality of Gurtnellen, will gain a few more inhabitants – hopefully including children, as it did decades ago. Today, many houses in Arni are used as vacation homes. On the last three available building plots, we aim to reintroduce permanent life and work, contributing taxes to the budget of this structurally weak municipality. In the context of the high plateau with its dispersed settlements, Olgiati’s seductively simple buildings will serve as welcome dialogue partners with the existing inventory – the residential houses, the aerial cableway station, the modest older vacation homes, and the agricultural utility buildings. The inhabited area along the Arniweg – from Hinterarni to Arnisee and Näcki – will receive a contemporary yet harmonious accent through the addition of the three new houses.

Architect Valerio Olgiati proved to be a capable and consistent partner for this task. The district development plan (QGP) and the architecture of the three varied sized houses, which integrate seamlessly into the landscape, were positively reviewed by the Uri Commission for Nature and Heritage Protection (NHSK).

Valerio Olgiati’s small, dark, timber-clad towers sprout from the meadow like mushrooms: no paved patios, no retaining walls, terraces, or balconies disfigure the slope. The original dry stone walls – once stacked to enlarge the farmers’ gardens – will be preserved. Beans, leeks, kohlrabi, and cucumbers from the garden will taste all the better. The narrow, unpaved paths meander almost invisibly towards the houses. The architect has addressed the task with craftsmanship, structural clarity, and conceptual precision – and has allowed his architectural genius to shine through.

Olgiati’s solution fully meets the brief and expectations of Poeticwalls: at the core of these simple, archaic gable-roofed houses with timber façades lies a pyramidal, soaring central space. A hard-to-define sense of boundlessness and freedom will support life and creativity within – and unlock access to one’s own inner resources.

Classic Olgiati. The feeling of joy at the pale morning light and the melancholy of the evening alpine blessing in this powerful landscape lie close together. The spatial structure resonates within the pyramid: echoes from distant cliff faces reverberate within us. Opposite, across the Reuss river, is the ever-changing face of the other equal-sided pyramid – the 3,200-metre-high Bristen. ‘The idea for the pyramid did not come from the Uri landmark,’ Olgiati, the Grisons-born architect, says with a smile.

The simplicity and archaic nature of the three varied scaled houses – each with its own land share and joint ownership of the dense and diverse mountain forest – will, shortly after completion, strengthen the sense of place. A feeling of belonging. Of being embraced by both visitors and residents of Arni. And: these three atelier houses will make their own meaningful contribution to the ongoing discourse on «building in the Alpine region».

Arni is situated on a south-facing sun terrace at 1’350 meters above sea level and is free of cars. After the construction of the three houses, no further building permits will be granted. The building site is located directly at the mountain station, on an exposed hilltop, oriented from south to east. It consists of meadow terrain with conifer trees, boulders, and terraced dry stone walls. The vegetation is alpine and extensive. At the edges, exposed rock emerges as polished stone ridges. To the south and east of the site are several buildings: residential houses, agricultural utility buildings, some older holiday chalets, and the mountain station of the Amsteg–Arnisee aerial cableway. The existing cluster of buildings is rural, archetypal, and understated in appearance. The structures are small-scale and not aligned with one another but scattered freely across the terrain. In winter, the area is normally covered in snow. There is an impressive mountain view from east to south – the mountains lie on the opposite side of the Reuss Valley. Seen from the pyramidal rooms of the houses, the uniform, three-sided pyramid of the 3,073-meter-high Bristen mountain greets the viewer (the architect was not inspired by this mountain for the design of the houses).

The property is not accessible by car. Access to the site is provided via the Amsteg–Arnisee aerial cableway. For a change of pace: on foot, by mountain bike, or e-mountain bike. The valley station is located directly next to the Amsteg motorway exit.
The mountain station is situated in front of the property (approx. 50 meters away).

Numbers & Facts:

·       Valley station: 512 meters above sea level

·       Mountain station: 1,302 meters above sea level

·       Elevation difference: 790 meters

·       Ride duration: 6 minutes

·       Cabin size: 4 persons (maximum load 400 kg)

·       Summer schedule: 6:55 AM – 6:55 PM (May to October)

·       Winter schedule: 7:55 AM – 4:55 PM (November to April)

·       Outside operating hours, the cableway can be operated with a token.

·       Andermatt: 20 minutes

·       Train station: 1 hour

·       Each house is built around a central, pyramid-shaped room.
The geometry and height of these rooms, along with openings in all directions,
allow experiencing the vastness of the landscape as if from a platform.

·       Each house has a basement level, a ground floor, and an attic floor.

·       The main room, shaped as a pyramid, is located on the ground floor.
Here, the surrounding landscape can be experienced spatially.

·       All other rooms have the character of niches.

·       The room layout is as follows:
Basement: kitchen, living-dining area, utility/storage room, WC
Ground floor: studio or living area
Attic floor: bedroom, bathroom, dressing room