New European Bauhaus Prizes 2023

Project category

Identify the award category for which this project is being submitted
Regaining a sense of belonging

Email user
jp@nokearchitects.com

Basic information
Project title
PAARY - modern retreat cottage

Full Project Title
Modern retreat cottage - rediscovering destinations in our own backyards

Please provide a short, catchy description of your project to be used in communication towards the public.
Cocooning, self-contained cottages, venues that make the most of outside spaces, and not-expensive yet welcoming community-conscious areas are among the features that could characterize residential design after COVID-19 era. Travel experiences are increasingly centering around protecting and preserving the natural surroundings and building sense of belonging with local heritage. A characteristic feature of the investment is its post-agriculture plan: placing building on stable layout as origin.

What was the geographical scope of your project?
Local

Where was your project implemented?
Member State(s) and Western Balkans
Poland

If relevant, insert names of region(s)/municipality(ies) involved
{Empty}

Does your project address mainly urban or rural issues?
It addresses urban-rural linkages

Does your project refer to a physical transformation of the built environment or other types of transformations (hard or soft investments)?
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)

Has your project benefited from EU programmes and/or funds?
No

Has your project won an EU prize with a monetary value awarded?
No

Is your project fully completed
Yes

Please indicate a date (mm/yy)
2022-09-10

On whose behalf are you submitting the application?
As a representative of an organisation
Please provide the contact details for the project promoter (the individual or representative of the organisation authorised to represent the project)
- Name of the organisation(s): NOKE Architects
  Type of organisation: For-profit company
  First name of representative: Justyna
  Last name of representative: Puchalska
  Gender: Female
  Nationality: Poland
  Function: Content Strategist
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Aleja 3 Maja 7a/30
  Town: Warsaw
  Postal code: 00410
  Country: Poland
  Direct Tel: +48 506 043 286
  E-mail: jp@nokearchitects.com
  Website: https://nokearchitects.com/
Social Media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
- URL: https://www.instagram.com/noke_architects/
- URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/noke-architects/
  Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): #architecture #interiordesign
In case my project is selected as a finalist of the NEB Prizes 2023, I agree to share the name (individual and/or organisation’s), email address, website and social media accounts indicated above with other NEB Prizes finalists. I also agree to publish the name (individual and/or organisation’s), website and social media accounts indicated above next to the public description of my project in the channels of the European Commission.
Yes

How did you hear about the New European Bauhaus Prizes?
Social Media

Description of the project
Please provide a summary of your project.
With users looking for safe, socially distanced stays while also yearning for connection, across this small-scale hospitality project, we were rethinking its offering. A characteristic feature of the investment is its post-agriculture plan: the main building situated across the road, the central part of the plot is a pig farm - stables, hen houses and pigsties, with the barn with access to the farmland at backyard. The main goal of this project was to blend into the landscape and reflect the rural legacy of the area, offering the space user the chance to enjoy beautiful and unspoiled natural environments.

Please indicate the main themes of your project with 5 key words.
regeneration

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
cocooning

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
embodied carbon

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
naturality

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
re:use

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of sustainability and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
The sustainable objective was to re-use all available materials that were scattered around the allotment. We focused on the history of agriculture development in this area - industrialization and degradation of classic farms forced people to migrate. As a result, we put on research the theme of individual elements’ disappearance and abandonment of plots. That is why we decided to recycle the house’s foundation made of piles of limestone. We took that sustainable responsibility to make the house disappear into the landscape. The main land consisted of an old house foundation and an old barn. We have put the focus on creating a regenerative recreation house. One of the first decisions was to keep the stable and re-invent it for the purpose of living in it.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience for people (through design, positive emotions and cultural benefits) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
The aesthetics step was to build an extension without compromising the land's history, heritage and landscape. Part of this strategy was to shift into sustainable design - the limestone was used on the elevation, and old barn’s wood as a main material for shutters and flooring. The old stable is now a main living area, the property was designed to be expanded and connected through a glass corridor. The new-built contrast cubicle includes an en-suite bedroom and a grand window overlooking the nature outside. This increasingly popular regenerative experience centers on respecting a location’s surroundings and helping users feel more connected to nature. We wanted to expand that feeling to the outdoors area. The relaxation zone is designed on the old stable’s contour. After implementation we will find there a sauna, cold-tub with water and fireplace spot. Meanwhile the remaining foundation of the house was left and planted with greens - that is a beautiful adorning process that will be developing over the time within natural season cycles.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of inclusion (ranging from accessibility and affordability for all to inclusive governing systems, design for all principles or new societal models) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
Both buildings of this urban/rural project are conducive to health and education. They provide comprehensive renewal and regeneration of the body. Due to the fact that they are based on cultural rituals, the users of these spaces not only rebuild their senses, but also give new value to local communities.

Please explain the way citizens benefiting from or affected by the project and civil society have been involved in the project and what has been the impact of this involvement on the project
The allotment gardens have a rich history of over two hundred years. They have become an integral part of modern European urban areas - Polish gardens are considered the most beautiful in Europe. We based the concept on that idea: allotment gardens are green islands that provide society the free access to rural legacy. They create space for movement, enabling the pleasure of growing fruit and vegetables by hand. They are the places where the big and the little ones can see for themselves about the dependencies prevailing in nature, learn about the cycles of the seasons. As a result, we tried to interpret a modern version of that agricultural routine. The pavilion is not only a place to relax and connect with nature. The whole “health path” was designed, including recreation space, community garden as well as a greenhouse. We have also decided to refresh the idea of dugout - a modern storage system based on the power of nature.

Please explain how different stakeholders at various levels (local, regional, national, European) were engaged in the design and implementation of the project. Please highlight what the added value of their engagement was.
Customized projects call for specialized support in every aspect. We believe in the power of teamwork. During the concept and implementation phase, we have assembled a team of the best technologists, craftsmen, industrial form designers, fitters, building contractors and landscape architects from the region. We always prioritize creative collaboration, doing our best to educate ourselves and our investors. This way not only the materials are local, but the renovation and built-in process was done by local and regional specialists.

Please explain which disciplines and/ or knowledge fields were reflected in the design and implementation of your project. Please explain how representatives of these different fields interacted with each other, and what the added value of this process was.
To begin with, the aim of the proposed concept is to turn to the psychological and physiological aspect of design to deliver holistic space for living. Based on synesthetic design and neurosciences applied to architecture, we wanted to investigate the impact of the quality of the environment (existing architecture) on the quality of life in homes, which from “concrete bedrooms” have become a 24/7 human microcosm. For research areas, we considered people’s apartments experienced with lockdown and remote work.

Please give information on the results, outcomes and impacts achieved by your project in relation to the category you apply for. This includes also benefits from the project for direct and indirect beneficiaries
As the final outcome, we strive to re-birth the local materials’ landscape with its modern interpretation; mineral plaster, stone, wood will continue the rural narrative, but in contemporary adaptation.

Please provide documents showing the results, outcomes and impacts of your project
Web link
Web link
- https://www.behance.net/gallery/138066479/PAARY-HOUSE-EXTENTION-AND-RENOVATION
Please highlight the innovative character of the project, when compared to mainstream actions in the field of the project
The prioritization of open-air experiences is driving innovation and investment in outdoor public spaces. Green spaces are shaping up to be the future of urban planning. Outdoor escapist spots have long been attractive assets for city-dwellers around the world, and with the outbreak of COVID-19, the desire for fresh air and open space has intensified. We are pointing the way forward to more permanent solutions, creating new wellbeing spaces.. In particularly stressful times, the practice of nature immersion—an emerging treatment prescribed by doctors for patients suffering from anxiety, depression and high blood pressure—is carrying over into interior spaces, which are being cocooned in warm, earthy tones to evoke a connection to nature in a calming, soothing environment.

Please describe the methodology or approach used in your project.
In the ancient tradition of the Slavs, we found proven methods of health prevention and treatment, adapting them to modern times. This is how the concept of the Slavic rural retreat was created. In addition to the basic functions of cleansing the body, the cottage is also to provide spiritual experiences. According to the philosophy of the ancient Slavs, a building is like a living organism. Therefore, each zone of the building is assigned a different element of nature: air, fire, water and earth. One of the greatest values of the project design is the holistic concept of the pavilion itself. The concept was entirely developed in a forgotten post-agricultural culture, which is why we decided to complete the space with a design of personalized furniture derived from the descriptions of Slavic rituals.

Please describe which elements of your project could be replicated or transferred to other places, groups of beneficiaries and context. This may involve for example aspects of the methodology, technology, processes, products, learnings etc.
Education is the key element to define cottage retreat future. We aim at sustainable development to be the core of this House Extension and Renovations portfolio. The modern world poses numerous new challenges to which we must adapt. Therefore, we examine people's needs in order to meet the expectations of users as accurately as possible. It is a perpetual evolution of our two main drives: learning and creation - that is exactly keywords that we would like to replicate and adapt in other rural places across Europe.

Please explain what kind of global challenges the project addresses by providing local solutions
As travel after a pandemic world shifts “from airplane to car, big city to small location, hotel to home,” as Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky noted in a June 2020 interview on CNBC, through this project we wanted to continue this narrative and show how new type of investors are rediscovering destinations in their own backyards in place of exotic trips to far-flung locales.
Please attach at least 6 high resolution images (or other types of visual representations, if images are not possible) to your application.
If you would like to upload additional documentation, please upload or write below
- 220902_Plansza nr 2 (1).pdf
By submitting your application you confirm that you are the copyright owner of the images provided and that they can be used by the European Commission for the purposes of promoting the New European Bauhaus on all platforms (websites, print, social media and other).
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that you are not in in one or more of the exclusion situations foreseen under Article 136 of the Financial Regulation.
Yes

By submitting this application, I declare that I am not related to the entities subject to EU restricted measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and subject to Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)1, and entities covered by Commission Guidelines No 2013/C 205/05), which are not eligible to participate in any capacity.
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that you assume sole liability in the event of a claim relating to the activities carried out in the framework of the contest, that the proposed project has not been proposed for the New European Bauhaus Prizes in any other category or strand and that it has not been subject to any type of investigation, which could lead to a financial correction because of irregularities or fraud.
Yes

By submitting your application, you guarantee that you are the author or have the rights to proceed with the application and to authorise the use of the project and that you have obtained any necessary consents, licenses or assignments from third parties and included copyright notices when necessary.
Yes

By submitting your application, you understand that all the applications that meet the eligibility requirements will be shared for the purposes of the selection processes, and notably published on the secured platform prizes.new-european-bauhaus.eu and for the purposes of the promotion of these on the New European Bauhaus website and/or other European Commission communication channels. In this sense, the applications would be widely available. Applicants should ensure that they present their projects, in such a way that they could be shared without giving rise to intellectual property related concerns. If your submission is selected as one of the finalists, it will additionally be shared for the purpose of the public vote that will take place. The European Union is granted a licence to use and share your application with the general public and the official external experts for the purposes of the selection process, including the voting. The European Union has the right to use the images and visual materials and the description provided in the application for communication purposes related to the contest and beyond. Rights granted comprise the right to store, reproduce, display, publish and communicate or distribute copies in electronic or digital format, including, but not only, through the internet. Unless you have disclosed your name, the European Commission has no obligation to share your name when using or disseminating your contribution to the public. The European Union cannot be held responsible in case any submitted project, is found to infringe third party’s rights. The European Union shall be neither responsible for the use that third parties may do of the applications or related content.
Yes

By submitting your application, you acknowledge that you read and understand that the ‘Guide to Applicants’ of the NEB Prizes 2023, available online in the website of the NEB Prizes 2023, is an integral part of this application form and that it must therefore be observed when completing and submitting your application.
Yes