Double Barn House by Katarzyna Starzyk is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 Golden A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Competition Category.
GoldArchitecture· 2023
Double Barn House
Client: A.P.A. Katarzyna Starzyk
Golden A' Design Award Winner in Architecture Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #147705The Design
About Double Barn House
Double Barn is a contemporary house located in the suburbs of Warsaw, designed for a family of four. The challenge was to create a modern, yet timeless house design, referring to the traditional architecture of Mazovia and adapting to the context of nature. In order not to overwhelm the surrounding single-family housing with its size, the house was divided into two interconnected blocks. From the inside of the house, mainly bright elements of HPL boards are visible, which makes it feel cozy. At the same time, the dark façades made of graphite tiles blend the house into the surroundings.
The Recognition
About the Golden A' Design Award
Double Barn House is a Golden A' Design Award winner, an immensely prestigious recognition granted to first-rate, marvelous, and outstanding designs. Golden winners are exceedingly innovative, visionary, and glamorously dazzling creations that reflect the prodigy, wisdom, and prowess of their designers. Double Barn House is expected to be a highly praised, trendsetting, and monumental invention that delivers unprecedented value. This Golden A' Design Award-winning design is a spectacular, respected project that highly benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. Double Barn House creates intense feelings of desire, evokes passion, encourages creativity, and fascinates us.
Where to Get It
Contemporary Residential Architecture Services
We design timeless homes that harmonize with nature and regional traditions while embracing modern living. Our Warsaw-based studio provides comprehensive architectural and interior design services, guiding you through the entire process from concept to completion. With over 14 years of experience, we create cohesive spaces that balance functionality with aesthetic excellence.
Discuss Your ProjectInterviews
Grand Interview
Your innovative approach to dividing Double Barn House into two interconnected blocks creates a striking visual harmony with its surroundings - could you elaborate on how this architectural decision evolved from the initial concept to final execution?
To ensure the building’s scale respected the landscape of small single-family homes in the immediate vicinity, we conceived the idea of dividing the structure into two interconnected blocks. This approach not only helped to harmonize the house with its surroundings but also allowed it to integrate seamlessly into the existing tree cover. Externally, the two blocks give the impression of separate buildings connected at the ground and first-floor levels. However, their placement is deliberate—carefully informed by the surrounding landscape, sun orientation, and functional requirements.
The Double Barn House masterfully balances privacy from the street view while maintaining openness toward the garden - what inspired your decision to create this dynamic contrast in the spatial arrangement?
The decision to angle one block slightly relative to the other created a dynamic interplay between the two forms, energizing the overall composition. This arrangement was also guided by practical considerations—angling one block toward the gate improved access to the three-car garage. This layout naturally resulted in a welcoming entrance courtyard on the east side and a private garden on the southwest side. Generous glazing on the south and west-facing facades ensures optimal energy efficiency, while overhanging roof slopes and existing greenery provide natural shading to prevent overheating in the summer.
In designing Double Barn House, how did you interpret and modernize the traditional architecture of Mazovia while ensuring the project remained contextually relevant to its suburban Warsaw location?
The design process emphasized the relationship between people, nature, place, history, and tradition. This approach stemmed from a deep exploration of the cultural context while simultaneously seeking a contemporary architectural expression. By drawing on the simplicity of Mazovian rural architecture—characterized by rectangular plans and symmetrical gabled roofs—we created a design that respects the region's traditions while reimagining them in a modern, timeless form. The result is a building that feels both deeply rooted in its context and forward-looking in its design language.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- The functional layout of the building has been divided into two interconnected blocks so that the size of the building does not disturb the landscape of small single-family houses. From the outside, both parts give the impression of two separate buildings. The graphite facade made of hand-formed brick refers to the dark pine trunks that grow in the area. The impression of the massiveness of the dark body is minimized by recesses finished with light wood-like boards.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Total floor: 351,61m2, Foot print: 272,82m2, Site area: 1373m2
- Tags
- Home, barn-house, modern barn, residence, detached house, Polish architecture
- Production Technology
- The facades were finished with graphite hand-formed tiles, while the recesses and arcades were covered with HPL boards in a shade of light wood. Thanks to such a procedure, mainly bright elements are visible from the inside of the house, which contributes to the impression of coziness. At the same time, the dark facades blend the house into the surroundings, giving priority to nature. To expose the rafters inside the house, the roof was insulated with PIR boards laid on the rafters. Gutters and downpipes have been discreetly hidden in the roof and inside the exterior walls.
- Design Challenge
- The challenge was to shape the architecture in such a way that it would not overwhelm the surrounding small single-family housing with its size. Hence the idea of dividing the house into two blocks and referring to the traditional buildings of Mazovia. It is a modern approach to a traditional design.
- Research
- Double Barn is a designer house, but at the same time durable and timeless, because it is firmly rooted in local tradition and adapted to the context of nature.
- Inspiration
- The house for a family of four is located on the suburbs of Warsaw, surrounded by scattered single-family housing. The area is sparsely urbanized and the neighboring buildings are very diverse without a predominant style. A question arose, what is the regional architecture of Mazovia and how to find it in this environment? The aim was to settle the project in the context of the region, respecting its tradition, but in a modern version.
- Project Duration
- Design work lasted from 2018 to 2019. Construction work began in 2019 and was completed in 2022. The house was built in the Polish village of Komorow Wies, surrounded by forests, meadows and a river.
- Operation Flow
- From the street, the building has few windows, thanks to which it provides intimacy to the residents. The main entrance leads through a glass hall overlooking the garden to a two-story living room. Large windows are oriented to the south-west side of the plot. Stairs lead to the parents' area with a hobby room and a master bedroom. Then, through the passage, to the second block containing the children's zone (rooms, bathroom, hobby room), which has been clearly separated from the parents' zone.
- Patents
- A.P.A. Katarzyna Starzyk
- Team Members
- Katarzyna Starzyk
- Image Credits
- Photo credit: Piotr Krajewski
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