Vallée de la Jogne, Gruyère
The design studio focuses on the idea of inhabiting the countryside and will explore how collective housing can be imagined in rural contexts, taking into account the specific conditions of the territory. It will take place in the Gruyère region, studying how materials are processed, transported and assembled in this region, with the aim of developing ways of building in equilibrium with local resources. The starting point for the design studio will be the careful observation of vernacular architecture, recognising craftsmanship and tradition while seeking to innovate and strengthen resilience with low-carbon and circular solutions, understanding construction as both a poetic and rigorous endeavour.
Through careful observation, we will create drawings and models, ranging from the detail to territory. This work will serve as a starting point for projects in the design studio, ensuring a profound connection between the architectural intervention and its context. We will explore the idea of inhabiting, understanding domestic space not only as a physical reality, but as the place we inhabit, which has a deep connection with the way, the place and with whom we live. We are also interested in the social dimension of construction, considering not only materials and processes, but also the people who shape them, advocating for architecture that is both ecologically and socially sustainable.
Through three fundamental actions: observing, living, and building, project development will be structured around a series of exercises aimed at achieving clear objectives, both individually and collectively. The design studio will use purely architectural means: drawings, photographs, hand-made images, and models as tools for exploration and discovery. We will engage in a process of reflection through practice, intuitive and open, to solve complex problems with simple and intuitive solutions. The studio encourages curiosity and experimentation, inviting students to discover new ways of seeing, thinking and doing.
Credits:
Atelier Estar,
Habiter la campagne
Joint Master of Architecture Fribourg
Haute école d’ingénierie et d’architecture de Fribourg
Autumn Semester 2025
Professors:
Aurora Armental Ruiz
Stefano Ciurlo Walker
In collaboration with:
Gruyère Pays-d’Enhaut Regional Nature Park
Collaborators:
Valentin Deschenaux, architect
Charly Jolliet, architect
Bruno Clément, Director, Gruyère Pays-d’Enhaut Regional Nature Park
Laurent Schuwey, Director, Chalet Schuwey, Im Fang
Thierry Pleines, Head of the 3rd Forestry District, State of Fribourg
Andrés Fraga Pérez, photographer
Students:
Sarah Bakkali Tahiri
Izadora Botelho
Adrien Bugnon
Inés Futuro Gomes
Laureline Godard
Nicolas Grunauer
Jagoda Huguenin
Kim Jaewook
Sylvain Jaquenoud
Sophie Laurent
Elise Lehmann
Hugo Morel
Dithichaya Pramoj Na Ayudhya
Florian Schibler
Johan Tenud
Varistha Thitiapiragkul
Stéphanie Trieu
Savannah Vilaysane
Yann Voirol
Acknowledgements:
Isabel Concheiro
Hani Buri
Charles Riedo
Matias Cesari
Marie-Laure Baron