MARIO BOTTA

The need to provide a permanent home for Werner Oechslin’s collection of rare and old books led to the idea of building a new annex to the 20th-century villa in Einsiedeln, in the canton of Schwyz. A round-shaped gazebo is set as a hinge between the villa and the library situated in the rear, in the steepest part of the hill overlooking the roofs of the village. Small windows are cut into the high walls enclosing the double-height volume containing the ordered bookshelves. An internal stair leads to the studio on the upper floor where the curved building narrows up into a single edge with a sweeping view towards the large monastery on top of the hill opposite.

source: Office web