This dark red concrete enclosure in Scharans, Switzerland, contains a work studio for a poet and musician.

Completed by Swiss architect Valerio Olgiati in 2007, the building’s walls are embossed both inside and out with a circular flower-like symbol.

A rectangular grass courtyard is located inside Atelier Bardill and is opened out to the sky through a large circular opening in the roof.

Sliding glass doors separate this courtyard from the studio space, which only occupies around a third of the overall interior.

Other recently featured projects from Switzerland include a faceted bronze museum extension - see them all here.

Photography is c/o Archiv Olgiati.

Here's some more explanation from Valerio Olgiati:

Atelier Bardill, Scharans, Switzerland

The Bardill Studio building has replaced an old barn in the protected centre of the village of Scharans. Building permission was granted by the local authorities on the condition that the new building would have exactly the same volume as the old barn.

The client, Linard Bardill, who lives in a house a very short walking distance away from the site, required only a single space to work in. This working space occupies less than a third of the stipulated volume. The rest of it is taken up by an atrium that is lent a monumental character by a large, round opening to the sky. It is this element that invests the building with its grandeur and clarity in contrast to the arbitrary geometry of its external appearance and the small dimensions of its village surroundings.

Oobject: private atelier - one working space
Location: Scharans, Switzerland
Client: Linard Bardill, musician + poet
Architect: Valerio Olgiati
Collaborators: Nathan Ghiringhelli (project manager office Olgiati), Nikolai Müller, Mario Beeli
Construction supervisor: Linard Bardill
Structural engineer: Patrick Gartmann, partner of Conzett, Bronzini, Gartmann AG, Chur
Materials: red in-situ concrete, steel, copper
Begin of planning: 2002
Begin of construction: July 2006
End of construction: August 2007
Volume: 665 m3
Area:
atelier space: 70 m2
garage, storage, technic: 65 m2
courtyard: 150 m2
Technical information: heated by solar energy, tabs, controled air ventilation system

Atelier Bardill is open for the public on Fridays between 1 pm and 5 pm