Living the dream
Zurich is home to nearly half a million people. Five of them live in well-known buildings – from Zurich’s only castle to the former family home of architect Justus Dahinden.
Schloss Hürlimann: ‘It’s entirely fake architecture’
13 years ago, Edgar Schwyn purchased the former property of the Hürlimann brewery family in the heart of the Enge district in Zurich. Today, Edgar lives in the castle. But originally the architect had very different plans.
Kalkbreite: ‘We should live in grand hotels’
Nearly 300 people live in the Kalkbreite Cooperative. Among these is Fred Frohofer. He rents a cluster apartment, meaning he shares a living room with his neighbours – and sometimes also the wok.
Rotach complex: ‘It already had everything we needed’
Ruggero Tropeano moved into the Rotach complex on the Limmat in the late 1980s, when he would regularly have to report drug dealers and dead bodies to the police. But today the architect thinks it’s a fantastic place to live.
Villa Dahinden: ‘It never ceases to surprise us’
In Witikon steht die Villa, die der Zürcher Architekt Justus Dahinden einst für seine Familie gebaut hat. Jetzt leben Marco Bakker und Dorothee Messmer darin. Das Ehepaar schätzt die durchdachte 70er-Jahre-Architektur – und die Lage am Standrand. Doch lange können Marco und Dorothee die Villa nicht mehr geniessen.
