The leaves are still sprinkled with delicate drops of morning dew.
Outside, in Hamburg, the bustling metropolis in northern Germany, the streets are already a hive of activity as another working day begins.
Time to savour a long, leisurely gaze over the Alster.
To watch the seagulls glide silently across the sky.
As you take in the great, boundless expanse, from a room flooded with natural light, the borders between indoors and outdoors begin to blur, as though the laws of physics no longer applied.
You feel the first rays of warm sunlight on your face.
Aren’t these precisely the kind of moments which give you the energy you need for yet another hectic day? – A view, not a window.
“A view, not a window” is the slogan of Swiss company Sky-Frame. Since its founding in 2003, Sky-Frame products have been featured in thousands of projects worldwide, winning design and business awards along the way for their frameless sliding windows. Today, products range from their classic sliding doors to curved and inclined sliding doors, as well as a pivot door. In their “Living with Sky-Frame” series, the brand showcases real-life projects to illustrate the spatial experience and view potential created through the use of Sky-Frame products.
A recent addition to the Living with Sky-Frame series is the video above, “Living with Sky-Frame: Hamburg,” which highlights The Fontenay, a new luxury lakeside residence in Hamburg featuring Sky-Frame sliding windows and doors. Architects Störmer, Murphy and Partners drew inspiration for the building’s organic form from its setting on the shores of Alster Lake and the surrounding parkland.
Large treetops are nestled softly into the curved façades. From the Alster Park as well as from the interior, new vistas and geometries appear with every new viewing angle – the building shape has no front or rear side. The façade is structured into elegant, horizontal strips consisting of glass and reflective, large-format ceramic panels, which are, according to the Alster Ordinance, finished in shining white.
The building’s shape is comprised of three interlocked circles to reference the tops of nearby trees; the building represents the harmony between nature and urban design. The architecture of The Fontenay blends both modern and classic design for a contemporary lifestyle. Each of the 130 rooms and suites use light, warm colors and high-quality materials to achieve an aesthetic of timeless elegance. With Sky-Frame’s large, frameless sliding windows eroding the threshold between indoors and outdoors, the building exudes a sense of relaxed, open living and provides stunning vistas of its surroundings.
Film & Concept: Boris Noir
