detached concrete house stands on stilts among forest in georgia

"For centuries, the mountainous perimeter of Tbilisi has acted as a climatic buffer and recreational zone. Within this area, Tskneti occupies the eastern slope of the Trialeti Range, where the urban grid transitions into oak and pine forests. During the Soviet era, the district became a suburban resort defined by state-built sanatoria and managed woodland. Later, private dachas created a closed social environment associated with political and cultural elites, while broader access to these spaces remained limited."

"Vacated villas were occupied by internally displaced families, and new private properties were consolidated behind tall concrete walls. Enclosure became a dominant spatial condition, with boundaries functioning less as architectural elements and more as territorial markers that altered the landscape and reduced shared outdoor space. This practice ultimately shaped local construction habits, producing an entrenched expectation of solid, opaque fencing. Recent municipal regulations have begun to restrict this trend, aiming to reintroduce visual and spatial permeability across the district."

Detached House by Wunderwerk sits on the forested slopes of Tskneti and prioritises openness through elevation and transparency. The house is positioned above a natural ravine, featuring a suspended volume and transparent ground-floor living spaces that allow the landscape to flow through the site. Tskneti’s history includes state-built sanatoria, private dachas, and later reinforced enclosure with tall concrete walls that reduced shared outdoor space. Vacated villas were reoccupied after the 1990s, shaping entrenched expectations of opaque fencing. Recent municipal regulations encourage visual and spatial permeability, and the project proposes an alternative boundary approach that minimises impact and keeps the forest integral to experience.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine