Times when the shelter becomes part of the residence
New safety strategies go to private estates. Investors ask not only about the area and view, but also about the shelter. Architects from BXB Studio propose a hybrid – a recreational zone with a garden, which at the time of danger becomes asylum with NBC resistance.
The first shelter Bogusław Barnaś, founder of the BXB Studio architectural studio, designed in 2014. He was huge, he had about 400 sq m. And it was created under an even greater private residence. Where? In Poland, so much is known, because top -shelf investors do not reveal much of their lives, it is hard to be surprised. On the occasion of this implementation, however, it turned out that specialized companies operating on our market operate in a military system – they simply put a bunker. -I thought that I didn’t actually know the architectural office in Poland or in the world that would deal with this topic from the design and designer side. So maybe to create an attractive usable space that would ensure safety in case of a threat? And so Scorpio House was created – recalls the architect. The project has evolved, several versions were created – from compact spaces to the second house underground. A garden has been added in the latest implementation. Where will it be built? This is again a secret related to security, it is only known that in Poland, although the investor comes from abroad.
Investment not only in security
Every Swiss citizen and 90 percent Finland’s population has access to a shelter, private or public. In Poland, it is only 3.8 percent. society. It is true that the Act on the protection of the population and civil defense, i.e. The shelter Act, signed by the President of the Republic of Poland on December 17, 2024, assumes that from January 1, 2026, each new multi -family investment will have to enable the organization of a temporary shelter in a crisis situation, but for now the greatest traffic can be seen in the private sector. The more that, as the architect says, the cost of building a house with an area of 400 sq m, to which we will add the so -called A safe space with an area of about 50 MZ with thick walls, NBC filters, armored doors and two evacuation outputs will increase by 300-600 thousand. zloty. In the scale of the entire investment it is not much, and in addition to security it gives an additional, very attractive space plus significantly increases the value of the property. The cost, of course, increases depending on the size of the shelter and its equipment – “The Sky is the Limit”. What is the latest BXB Studio project?
Amphitheater with a slide and shelter
What the observer standing in the driveway can see is a compact house with traditional proportions and a sloping roof (the building surface is only 140 sq m). Attention is drawn to a round dormer called the eye of a bull (oeil-de-boeuf), a wooden but modern facade cladding, an interestingly solved colon and shingle. Walking around the building, we come across large glazing, behind the next corner there is a glazed terrace with a sliding roof, outdoor kitchen and also glazed entrance to the living room. Minimalist, elegant and respecting the landscape, but without major surprises.
These appear – and with great force – when we go to the back of the building. There is something that is difficult to define at first: a cavity in the ground reminiscent of an antique amphitheater, which you can get to the arc running stairs or … a slide. At the bottom there is a garden, swings, a table and another glazed entrance – this time to the holiday zone. Nothing announces that it is a vestibule of the shelter.
Nuclear resistance discreetly hidden
The shelter zone was located right next to the glazed rooms adjacent to the underground garden. Technological elements, such as tight doors with atomic resistance, have been carefully hidden behind veneered panels. They are closed only at the time of danger. Thanks to this, safe space is discreet, even imperceptible every day for the user. Based on cooperation with specialized companies, we can create any area and any function in the underground of the house, e.g. a winery, home cinema, music room, luxury SPA or an additional guest apartment. At the same time, it is a house space with NBC resistance (nuclear, biological and chemical), which ensures safety in the event of a pandemic, cataclysm and war.
The emotional nature of the architecture during the threat time
– The project touches on significant social issues. Thanks to the Scorpiogarden House system, we change the emotional nature of this type of architecture with a negative color – sums up the architect. – It can be said that we conjure up dark war bunkers, giving human shelters, a universal and available dimension. Scorpio Garden House is a solution compatible with every type of building, development facilities, residential housing estates, apartment buildings, luxury villas and small houses. This is a natural continuation of the residential part located underground, which has access to daylight and outdoor space, in which we can arrange garden compositions or recreational spaces, thus increasing the value of the investment implemented or increasing the parameters of the utility space in the building – he adds.
Bogusław Barnaś, BXB Studio – one of the most awarded Polish architects. He graduated from architecture at the Cracow University of Technology and Fachhochschule Münster. Included in the top 20 architects according to the British wallpaper. Author of the Polish homestead – the most -awarded house from Poland and the arcaded hut in the world, recognized as the most beautiful home in the world – Global Design Award. Author Scorpio, a defined system of building shelters distinguished by the German Design Council with the Iconic Awards. Winner of the SARP 2023 Year Award – the most important architectural award in Poland.
