Slovenian Concrete Home Rejects Contextual Mimicry by Skupaj Arhitekti

The House on the Edge of the Plain by Skupaj Arhitekti is a minimalist concrete residence near Murska Sobota, Slovenia. It reinterprets the region’s modernist legacy while embracing the flat Prekmurje plain.

This article explores how the single‑storey home uses locally sourced materials and precise geometry. The bold material language helps balance retreat, framed views, and connections to the landscape.

Project context and landscape

Designed to sit low within the expansive agricultural terrain, the house appears as a contemporary sculpture. It respects the landscape rather than competing with it.

The architecture presents a restrained, monolithic presence on the Prekmurje plain. Large openings invite nature inside while maintaining a sense of refuge.

Design concept and materials

The project uses concrete cast with aggregate sourced from the nearby Mura river. The concrete is subtly pigmented to evoke clay and finished with rough, recycled formwork for a textured surface.

Although the initial concept considered rammed earth, the final material emphasizes a sturdy, water-resistant approach. This anchors the home in its flat setting.

• Material palette: concrete with Mura river aggregate
• Texture: rough, recycled formwork finish
• Pigmentation: clay-like tones to echo the landscape
• Glazing: full-height windows that frame the landscape

Spatial organization and program

The square plan centers on a large freestanding storage unit. This divides a northern bedroom zone from a southern living, kitchen, and dining area.

Two compact cores next to the storage unit house bathrooms and services. Only a kitchen niche and a single living space are enclosed.

Both halves of the home open to the landscape. The bedroom opens through a glazed corner, and the living area through a wide sliding glass door mounted on a white-steel track that frames the garden.

Outdoor spaces and privacy strategy

Thick concrete roof sections shelter an eastern entrance porch and a southern dining terrace. A protruding white-steel gutter to the north finishes in a rain chain draining into a pebble garden.

Partner Tomaž Ebenšpanger explains that the design focuses on retreat and framed views. Privacy is controlled by deployable curtains that can be drawn as needed.

This approach lets inhabitants adjust light, air, and views in response to daily life or changing seasons.

Skupaj Arhitekti shows that a simple concrete style can respect a region’s modernist history. The result is a contemporary, climate-conscious living space.

The House on the Edge of the Plain highlights material honesty and clear spatial design. The surrounding landscape strongly influences the architecture.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Skupaj Arhitekti “refuses contextual mimicry” for concrete home in Slovenia