House by the Garden of Venus

Willendorf in der Wachau, Austria

 

Located in the Austrian village of Willendorf in der Wachau, the House by the Garden of Venus is a transformation of a historic family home. Surrounded by apricot orchards and overlooking the Danube Valley, the renovation connects two generations under one roof—reinterpreting the traditional farmhouse as a modern, daylight-filled residence.

Designed by Volker Dienst and Christoph Feldbacher in close collaboration with the homeowner, the project embraces daylight as a defining architectural element. Large roof windows and a carefully framed north-facing opening bring natural light deep into the home, shaping both its atmosphere and spatial experience.

VELUX Daylight Visualizer supported the design process by simulating daylight performance and visualizing how light would move through the space over time. These insights helped the team refine details, optimize visual comfort, and ensure a harmonious balance between light and structure. By integrating daylight from the earliest stages, the House by the Garden of Venus delivers living environment which feels deeply connected to both its occupants and its natural surroundings. 

Read the full case study on House by the Garden of Venus

Concept

The house is organized across three distinct levels, each designed to respond to specific needs while preserving the character of the original structure. The ground floor, built with thick original stone walls, remains largely unchanged and continues to serve its practical function—housing farm equipment and processing seasonal fruit—benefiting from its naturally cool, shaded environment. Above it, a lightweight prefabricated timber frame forms a new upper floor that accommodates everyday living, kitchen, and bedroom spaces. This “house-on-a-house” design required only minimal structural intervention and was craned into place without disturbing the surrounding orchard. Generous openings on the east, west, and especially a fully glazed north-facing gable bring abundant daylight deep into the plan while framing expansive views of the Danube Valley. Tucked beneath the roof ridge, a compact loft mezzanine offers additional sleeping or study space, made bright and airy with daylight from VELUX roof windows.

Materials

The material choices in the House by the Garden of Venus are driven by performance as much as aesthetics. At the base, stone and exposed concrete provide thermal mass—absorbing heat during the day and releasing it at night—while the spruce interior linings in the timber-framed upper story help soften acoustics and reflect diffuse light throughout the space. On the southern façade, silver-fir slatted screens reduce glare and ensure privacy without obstructing the expansive views. Triple-glazed timber-aluminium windows and a highly insulated envelope using cellulose further enhance energy performance, supporting a daylight-centred design that balances comfort, efficiency, and atmosphere.

Design and Simulation

Daylight was a central design driver in the House by the Garden of Venus, with early-stage analysis supported by the VELUX Daylight Visualizer. This free, validated simulation tool enabled the design team to explore how natural light would interact with the interior—testing variables such as roof window placement, ceiling geometry, and material reflectance. By modeling real-world conditions over time, the tool provided both visual outputs and performance metrics, including Daylight Autonomy and glare risk, helping to inform design decisions before construction began. To integrate these insights seamlessly into your own projects, a large range of BIM VELUX roof-window solutions is available to download. The roof window used in the House by the Garden of Venus is the GGL UK04 model (134 × 97.8 cm); for detailed specifications, please contact your local VELUX representative.