OFIS Arhitekti reconstructs historic post-war home in Slovenia
Slovenian studio OFIS Arhitekti has completed House Under the Poplars, the reconstruction and extension of a historic post-war home in Ljubljana.
The original house was designed as part of a self-built housing development called Naselje Murgle, constructed between 1965 and 1982. Planned by architects France and Marta Ivanšek, it is considered one of Slovenia's most important post-war developments.
With many of the homes in this development now in need of renewal, local studio OFIS Architekti approached House Under the Poplars as a prototype, intended to demonstrate how they can be updated while still preserving the spirit of the original development.
The studio said it took the "decisive but culturally sensitive" step of entirely dismantling the home before reconstructing and extending it using contemporary materials.
"The project began with a simple ambition, to show that the small, timber houses of Naselje Murgle can be gently renewed without losing the qualities that make the neighbourhood so loved," the studio told Dezeen.
"As many of these homes face renewal, the settlement's identity depends on upgrades that remain sensitive to its landscape, scale, and cultural memory," it added. "The aim was to keep the familiar calm outline of the original house, while adding a new space that opens the home more generously to the garden and to the trees that define Murgle's character."
The original open-plan layout of House Under the Poplars was maintained, with the living, dining and kitchen area to the west expanded with a "greenhouse-like" timber-framed glazed extension that frames views of the trees and a nearby park.
Flanking this extension are two skinny brick piers, a distinctive feature of the original home that OFIS Arhitekti has contrasted with walls of black timber battens, preventing overlooking from the neighbouring buildings.
Inside, the walls and ceilings of House Under the Poplars have been lined in pale timber. The living area is organised around an area of walk-on glass flooring that reveals a small wine cellar below, alongside a freestanding fireplace set into a wall niche.
To the south, the floor level steps down into the main bedroom area, separated from the living area by two standalone bathroom volumes. To the east, an additional guest bedroom is situated alongside a study behind a more closed brick facade.
"Brick elements and vertical wood cladding continue the vocabulary of the 1980s houses, while the transparent extension introduces a contemporary softness that still feels at home among the trees," the studio said.
"Timber remains the heart of the structure, reflecting the Scandinavian influence that shaped the original settlement."
OFIS Arhitekti is led by Oman and Spela Videcnik. Other recent projects by the studio include the renovation of a traditional stone homestead in the Slovenian village of Avber and the overhaul of a stone home on the Croatian island of Cres.
The photography is by Tomaz Gregoric.
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