SOMAA's House in Process, a 1961 family home reworked over 12 years in Ludwigsburg

Most renovations have a start and an end. House in Process, in the small German city of Ludwigsburg, had neither in the usual sense. Stuttgart-based SOMAA Architektur & Innenarchitektur worked with the owners, a family of four, on their 1961 house between 2013 and 2026, letting it develop in stages. The architects say the point was not to replace the old building but to "reread it", and they are keen to stress this was no linear renovation story.

Outside, the house now wears a dark, ventilated skin of charred timber in the Japanese yakisugi tradition, which the team sees as protection rather than destruction. Gold-anodised window reveals and a brass front door catch the light against the black. Inside, things turn pale: natural wood, restored white plaster and the original parquet. A new roof prompted a loft extension lined entirely in timber, warm but pared back, in keeping with founder Hadi A Tandawardaja's belief that reduction is not renunciation.

There is a separate apartment too, plus a full energy retrofit with wood-fibre insulation, triple glazing, a heat pump and solar panels set into the roof. Decks, a garden and, later, a natural pool extend family life outdoors. It's a private home, so this one is for reading rather than visiting, and a reassuring tale for anyone whose own house still feels unfinished.

Our summary of a story from Wallpaper*, published 23 October 2026. Read the original

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