K O S M O S architects

„Merry Christmas & Happy New Year: Visual Stereotypes Matrix“. This year for our annual New Year gift we reflected on how celebrations, congratulations and festivities produce enormous amounts of stereotypical cliché imagery: boosted with the artificial intelligence, that gave a possibility to produce billions of images a day. The greetings and postcards that we send to our loved ones, got transformed to almost a scaring „alphabet“ of banalities and clichés, that continuously get more and more blatant. (Poster side 2) Altogether, multiplied with the creepy AI errors – such as a candles floating in tea cups, or a three-eyed kitten, or a six-fingered baby jesus – they give quite an overwhelming image of the present and possible future (Poster side 1). We used this moment to reflect on this phenomenon and wish you all something unexpected, non-stereotypical, truly novel in the New Year. We wish you not to reproduce more and more clichés and to reflect on the production that we do. Download link in bio (digital version). ⛄️ You can also download New Year presents from previous years for free on our website in digital format (including architectural cocktail book, architectural snowflakes, children’s book, tablecloth, carnival masks and more) Find more on hashtag #kosmos_architects_hny

Exhibition of “FORCED REUSE” research in Dropcity in Milan is a result of a two-year-long research that investigates the phenomenon of adaptive reuse driven by acute community needs and conducted by users independently from architects and designers. The project uncovers the driving force behind non-professional reuse of building elements and spaces. In particular, it is interested in the reasons that push communities to rethink conventional building practices in regions where necessity overrides formal systems — where people are forced to reuse. A refugee shelter made from old oil containers, a house built with used car tires, an old bus repurposed as a countryside barn, a bridge constructed from a train wagon, a war bunker transformed into a car repair shop, and a cooperative garage converted into an improvised gym — these are just a few examples of unique typologies discovered in the research. Structures built not from what is traditionally meant for building — built from scarcity and poverty, and at the same time always smartly reusing something that is in excess, what is conventionally considered “waste.” These structures are crafted with immanent smartness, wit, and beauty, making them inherently ecological. This exhibition lasts for five weeks after the opening on November 1st. Publication of the research results will follow next year. The scenography where the exhibition takes place — is a 1:1 replica of the case study FO012, where a greenhouse was used as a shelter for humans after the earthquake in Japan. The design of this exhibition is zero-waste: the greenhouse will be reused after the exhibition as a real greenhouse for the agriculture purposes in the Venice region; the tires — will be returned to a car tire storage. The research was realized by KOSMOS Architects, HEAD — Genève and Gili Merin. Photos 📸 by Niko Miloradovic @niko_milo

We are happy to announce the publication of a book developed together with our dear colleagues from TU Wien “Reuse in Teaching - Learning and teaching transformation”. The book showcases three design studios dedicated to adaptive reuse, including “Hardware and Software in Architecture”, taught by KOSMOS Architects, and situates them within a broader academic and professional context. Book is published in Triest Verlag and will be presented on 14.11.2025, at 18:00 in Prechtlsaal at TU Wien. Through examples of student work from the design studios, the book uncovers contemporary narratives of adaptive reuse and design methodologies. It also includes contributions from studio guests, symposium presentations, and textual essays. Among the contributors are: Adam Caruso @adamcarusolondon , Gunnar Grandel, Tina Gregoric @tina_gregoric , Elke Krasny, Erik Langdalen, Charlotte Malterre-Barthes @charlottemalterrebarthes , @rudolfscheuvens Rudolf Scheuvens , Astrid Staufer @astridstaufer , Inge Vinck @vinckinge , Jan De Vylder @architectenjdviv . It is not only an exciting reflection on interdepartmental and interinstitutional collaboration in teaching adaptive reuse, but also an attempt to outline possible directions for the evolution of architecture in response to contemporary challenges — and to explore ways to address them through education. Published by Triest Verlag; co-authored with: Lorenzo De Chiffre @elledici , Artem Kitaev @artemkitaev , Eva Mair @____evamair , Katharina Paschburg @katharinapaschburg , Katherina Putzer.

Stammhaus Transformation of a 1970-s villa in Vienna into a home for three families. . A new roof unifies and gathers the old volumes into a single, simple form. Interpreting the existing structure as a constellation of three blocks spread across three floors, the house is designed with the potential to host three families under one roof. The roof, as the central element of the housing typology, accommodates open, semi-open, and enclosed spaces, creating a matrix of environments available for inhabitation and reinterpretation. . Strategic cuts through the façade, walls, floor slabs, and roof establish a new organization within the existing structure, creating opportunities for enhanced visual and physical connections. . Photography by @rasmus.norlander . Collaboration with Gordon Selbach. @gordonselbach Team: Artem Kitaev Leonid Slonimskiy Gordon Selbach Andreas Maximilian Arndt Vsevolod Babichuk Simon Seliutin Johannes Zanon

Recent work of our students got nominated to Swiss Design Prize. ‘Climatic Villa’ is a project that explores the complexities and contradictions between architectural heritage and the challenges posed by the climate crisis. It is a result of a student workshop that took place in the the historical Villa Romaine, located in the southern French city of Hyères. Once a luxurious private residence dedicated to pleasure and hedonism, Villa Romaine and its garden were transformed following multiple dystopian scenarios that society may face in the near future—such as water scarcity, floods, extreme heat, virus contamination and extreme air pollution. During a week-long workshop students transformed different spaces within the Villa and reimagined the villa’s main hall, terrace, staircase, maintenance room, garden, and swimming pool into new radical typologies. The workshop was a collaboration between two schools: HEAD – Genève and École Camondo Méditerranée. The project of our students is shortlisted for the Design Prize Switzerland. @design.preis.schweiz @headgeneve x @ecolecamondo @villanoailles @studiochaos.ch @studio_valentin_dubois @random_paths

“Antimatter”. The tower that was not needed: it was already there. The project for the new tower building of science and physics of University of Geneva takes a radical approach of reusing the existing resources. The tower of Swiss Radio and Television, located next to the site is going to be vacated soon, and our proposal uses its existing areas as part of the new university development. Besides resource-saving, it allows to keep the established mid-rise urban scale of Geneva’s landscape. Existing buildings of the university campus are partly preserved, partly disassembled to serve in the new structure. . Competition entry in collaboration with @sujets.objets . KOSMOS Team: Kitaev Artem Krymskaya Natasha Selyutin Semyon Slonimsky Leonid . Structural Enginners: MFIC ingénieurs civils

We are happy to announce the publication of our new book, „(Con)Temporary (Archi)Tecture. Structures of Necessity”. (link in bio). This publication offers a fresh and compelling perspective on the often-overlooked world of temporary infrastructure. These utilitarian structures—such as scaffolding, temporary supports, elements of protection and navigation, as well as climatic and event infrastructure—ensure the functioning of multiple processes essential to contemporary society, while often remaining under-reflected in social perceptions and academic discourse. By crossing out “Archi” in the “Architecture” and highlighting “Temporary” in the word Contemporary, the book emphasizes its focus on temporary structures that lack declared authorship and are characterized more as a practice rather than project. In this sense, these construction solutions can be perceived as a form of contemporary vernacular. The book reveals the inherent ingenuity of these structures and their capacity to respond dynamically to immediate needs with minimal waste and maximum efficiency. This new approach shows that these “structures of necessity” offer an architectural language from which architects can learn—particularly in terms of adaptability, the use of local resources, circular economy principles, and conceptual radicalism— arguably pointing toward a new type of architectural order. Ultimately, the book raises the question: How permanent should architectural solutions be in a continuously changing world? By examining the logic of these ubiquitous and quotidian infrastructures, the book explores what contemporary architecture can learn from the temporary structures. The book has contributions by @jan_de_vylder , @charlottemalterrebarthes and Philip Ursprung. The book is published by Birkhäuser Publishing House @birkhauser_books and supported by Swiss Art Council @prohelvetia .

Off-season pavilion in Logroño, an ephemeral “chapel” made of temporary borrowed wine storage boxes, is nominated to @archdaily building of the year 2025 award. We would be grateful if you vote for it (link in bio), otherwise just happy to have an opportunity to share a nice photo of it by @laurianghinitoiu again

We would like to present our new research and upcoming exhibition: “FORCED REUSE”. . 🛞 . A refugee shelter made from old oil containers, a house built with used car tires, an old bus repurposed as a countryside barn, a bridge constructed from a train wagon, a war bunker transformed into a car repair shop, and a cooperative garage converted into an improvised gym—these are just a few examples of unique typologies, discovered in the “Forced Reuse” research. “FORCED REUSE” is an ongoing research that investigates the phenomenon of adaptive reuse of objects and spaces driven by acute community needs and conducted by users independently from architects and designers. The project uncovers the driving force behind non-professional reuse of building elements and spaces. In particular, it is interested in the reasons that push communities to rethink conventional building practices in regions where necessity overrides formal systems; where people are forced to reuse. The first exhibition will open (with an apéro) at Foundation Clarté (the iconic Immeuble Clarté building by Le Corbusier) in Geneva on January 14, 2025, at 5pm. We invite everyone who is in Geneva to join. Project is developed in collaboration with HEAD Genève, Valentina de Luigi and Gili Merin @gilimerin @headgeneve and goes in parallel to a semester research by students of @head_baai It is an extention and continuation of a research made in 2021 in MARCH school. Forced Reuse is financed by HES-SO RCDAV and co-financed by: HEAD – Genève (HES-SO)

What are the rituals and processions that accompany and embody the rotation of the earth around the sun, or, in other words, the new year celebration? As for the last 10 years, we would like to share a New Year gift this year: a calendar with 12 detailed plan drawings (1,2 m long each), depicting traditions and processions in different cultures: from Swiss Silvesterchlausen monsters to Andalusian Zambomba bonfires, from Chinese lunar New Year dragons to Ethiopian Enkutatash; and many more, including a dull celebration in a corporate office or annoying “traditions” in the shopping malls. Download link in bio (digital version); or feel free to order in comments, via email or in direct messages. You can also download New Year presents from previous years for free on our website in digital format or purchase printed versions (including architectural cocktail book, architectural snowflakes, children’s book, tablecloth, carnival masks and more) Find more on hashtag #kosmos_architects_hny

ROCK & SPONGE. Schoolhouse in Visp, Switzerland, competition. . The project is a school with two faces: an urban, mineral front facing the existing brutalist 1970-s schools and a green nature front facing the green space. The park, which we call the “New Biotope”, is a public green space that is a place for play, a green sponge for water infiltration, a place of biodiversity and a noise buffer between the school building and the adjecent residential buildings. The generous balconies are used as a transitional space between the park and the building and serve as elevated space for students’ gardening activities. The project provides a compact school building with minimal footprint adjacent to the existing school complex, maximizing open space for the development of a new park, a new biotope, and reuses the materials of the existing buildings on the site. . Landscape architecture: Fanny @fchristinaz . Structural engineer consultation: Giotto Messi . KOSMOS Team: Leonid Slonimsky Artem Kitaev Dmitry Prikhodko Natasha Krymskaya Boris Nemtsev 🪨✖️🌳 ROCK & SPONGE. Школа в г. Висп, Швейцария, конкурс. . Проект представляет собой школу с двумя сторонами: городской, минеральный фронт, обращенный к существующим бруталистским учебным зданиям 1970-х годов, и зеленый природный фронт, обращенный к зеленому массиву. Парк, который мы называем «Новый биотоп», - это общественное зеленое пространство, которое является местом для игр, зеленой губкой для инфильтрации воды, местом биоразнообразия и шумовым буфером между зданием школы и прилегающими жилыми домами. Просторные балконы используются как переходное пространство между парком и зданием и служат приподнятым пространством для занятий учеников садоводством. Проект предусматривает компактное школьное здание с минимальной площадью, примыкающее к существующему школьному комплексу, максимально увеличивает открытое пространство для развития нового парка, нового биотопа и повторно использует материалы существующих зданий на участке. . Ландшафтная архитектура: Фанни Кризтиназ. Инженер-конструктор: Джотто Месси . Команда КОСМОС: Леонид Слонимский Артем Китаев Дмитрий Приходько Наташа Крымская Борис Немцев

Transformation of a corporate office in Zürich. Generic office space became significantly less used due to the spread of the home office. In order to rethink the space, its function, and meaning, we turned it into a new flexible-usage hall for team activities, lectures, events, celebrations, group meetings by the act of radical removing. Meeting room partitions, working tables, grey synthetic carpet and the Armstrong suspended ceiling were displaced, revealing the basic industrial hall appearance of the bare original building. Central element was added: a huge central elliptical “piazza” enclosed by a sliding acoustic curtain that allows to gather inside but keeps the space fully open when needed. More information – in a recent post on our website . 🥏 . Трансформация корпоративного офиса в Цюрихе. Типовое офисное пространство, которое стало значительно меньше использоваться из-за распространения хоум- офиса, было превращено в новое пространство гибкого использования для командной работы, лекций, мероприятий, праздников, групповых встреч путем радикального демонтажа. Перегородки переговорных комнат, рабочие столы, серый ковролин и подвесной потолок армстронг были демонтированы, обнажив первоначальный вид каркаса здания. Был добавлен центральный элемент: огромная центральная эллиптическая «пьяцца», закрытая раздвижным акустическим занавесом, который позволяет собираться внутри, но при необходимости сохраняет пространство полностью открытым. . Project was developed with Bertrand Van Dorp and is a follow-up of a collaboration between the client and the Interior Architecture department of HEAD – Genève.