New life for terraced house

Shotgun house in Nesoddtangen, Norway by Austigard arkitektur

In the 19th century it was common in the American South to build a “shotgun house”, which is a simple rectangular building. Now Norwegian architecture firm Austigard has come up with its own updated version.

On the upper floor of a terraced house, they have taken down all the internal walls to create an open-plan layout with voluminous windows on three sides. The room is divided by screens of pale glulam that create different zones in the space while still retaining the sense of a cohesive unit. Each zone is marked out by roof beams that are also made of glulam, as are the posts. The built-in storage is clad in birch veneer.

The old floor has been sanded and the holes and marks left by the missing walls have been filled in with new wood. The inviting room offers a warm contrast with the lower floor, which has kept its previous form. Certain Japanese influences can be seen, including the raised section where tatami mats invite visitors to sit on the floor.

Read more at austigard.eu

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