Martin Gabriel: creative home projects in Switzerland

Anyone who meets Martin Gabriel for the first time quickly realizes: Here, he works with someone who thinks of living spaces as projects, in terms of art, technology, and everyday logic. No superfluous spectacle, no fashionable overkill. Instead, he focuses on precise planning, honest materials, and solutions that last for years. Many of his projects are set in Switzerland, between alpine terrain, dense urban neighborhoods, and lakeside or riverside locations. Precisely where architectural culture and quality of life often wrestle with each other.

A profile between building culture and product thinking

Martin Gabriel is neither an old-school architect nor a pure interior designer. He combines planning disciplines, craftsmanship, and digital tools. Every apartment and every house is developed like a product with a clear vision: What should the space be able to do, how should it feel, how easy to maintain, and how energy-efficient should it be?

• He works with layouts, proportions and lighting before the first material is selected.
• It calculates life cycle costs instead of just purchase prices.
• He models in 3D, simulates daylight and heating load, and tests variants with real data.

Sounds sober. But the result is surprisingly poetic.

Switzerland as a stage: rules, quality, precision

Swiss construction projects adhere to high standards. This sounds like bureaucracy, but it simplifies many things if you approach it correctly.

• SIA standards: They determine everything from area definitions to tolerances and are the common thread throughout statics, building services and execution.
• Minergie and GEAK: Energy standards and building certificates that make planning decisions tangible.
• Building permits: Procedures, deadlines, and neighbor involvement vary by canton. A well-structured application saves time and stress.

Gabriel uses this structure as an opportunity. Those who document clearly early on win. Those who explain materials and details win twice: clients receive clarity, and authorities gain a solid foundation.

Design principles: calm, structure, surprise

Rooms that are enjoyable to live in have order. Not stiff, but natural. Three principles guide many of his designs:

1. Reduction to the functional
   Every element needs a purpose. Sliding doors that connect spaces. Built-in cabinets that integrate installation and storage space. Furniture that plays with floor plan axes.

2. Material as a story
   Oak, ash, larch. Jura limestone, Vals quartzite, exposed concrete. All materials are considered in terms of their feel and aging. A kitchen may take on a certain amount of wear. A floor should develop an elegant patina.

3. Light as architecture
   Daylight directs. Lighting sets accents. Warm white in the evening, neutral in the workplace. Pleasant radiant panel heating improves the indoor climate. Venetian blinds replace constant glare, diffuse ceiling reflections replace spotlight overkill.

The project process that works

From the idea to the handover of the keys, his home projects follow a stringent pattern:

• Needs and target image: interview, daily routines, storage space, technology preferences, budget range.
• Surveying and inventory: point cloud, pipes, supporting structure, building physics.
• Variant study: 2 to 4 floor plan options, material mood, investment consequences.
• Preliminary project and cost estimate: SIA phase logic, TGA concept, rough schedule.
• Building submission and detailed planning: plans, sections, piping, lighting.
• Execution and quality control: mock-ups, sampling, billing based on performance status.
• Handover and readjustment: Seasonal fine-tuning of building services, user coaching.

That may sound formal, but in practice it leads to fewer compromises in the wrong places.

Three exemplary scenarios

Urban renewal in Zurich

An 80-square-meter period building in District 4, with a ceiling height of 3.10 meters. The goal: openness without the loft-like appearance. The solution: two floor-to-ceiling sliding panels connect the kitchen and living room when needed, absorbing noise while maintaining the existing proportions. A multifunctional wooden strip houses kitchen appliances, a wardrobe, and a utility cabinet. The building services are integrated into an acoustic frame.

Result: 30 percent more usable space, noticeably better air quality, GEAK A for the apartment.

Terraced house on Lake Geneva

A family wants quiet bedrooms and a lively ground floor. Gabriel divides the zones using acoustically effective surfaces and lighting design. A seamless natural stone floor extends from the entrance into the kitchen, with a light slatted ceiling hovering above, diffusing light and concealing cables. Smart controls, yes, but without the technical gimmick: scenes are limited to everyday situations.

Disadvantage identified and resolved: Wi-Fi coverage and KNX functions initially clashed. A cable backbone and a clean VLAN structure brought stability.

Holiday home in Prättigau

A timber construction with a clear geometry. Larch on the outside, ash on the inside. A central stove module serves as a heat storage unit, flanked by a small heat pump and PV system. Large, south-facing windows provide shade and deep reveals. Inside, there's no chalet kitsch, but rather textile warmth and handcrafted details. Everything can be operated energy-efficiently in winter and cooled naturally in summer.

Material culture that lasts

Not every material lives up to its marketing promises. Gabriel groups it into three categories:

• Primary: solid wood, natural stone, lime plaster, brick, high-quality exposed concrete.
• Secondary: Wood-based materials with low-emission bonding, terrazzo, large-format ceramics.
• Tertiary: Composite materials that make sense in certain areas if they are robust and maintainable.

Advantages of primary materials: repairability, durability, and a timeless appearance. This leads to lower turnover of space, because you don't have to rethink every five years. A win-win both economically and ecologically.

Technology with a sense of proportion

Smart Home isn't an end in itself. What matters is the benefit. Gabrel's rules of thumb:

• Lighting: Scenes for dining, working, and evenings. Presence in adjacent rooms, otherwise manual operation. DALI or Casambi for flexibility.
• Climate: Hybrid of underfloor heating, individual room controls, and a good building envelope. Window sensors instead of constant air conditioning.
• Security: Contact detectors at entrances, cameras only where absolutely necessary. Offline-capable systems preferred.
• Data: Dedicated network cables in work and media zones. Wi-Fi for mobile devices, but don't use it as a backbone.
• Server: Small, quiet, reliable. Open source where possible to ensure user independence.

He likes to say: Technology should calm down, not constantly demand attention.

Structure costs clearly

Transparency begins with the budget. Gabriel divides budget items into three major blocks:

• Building structure and shell
• Technology and infrastructure
• Expansion and furnishing

Example ranges for Switzerland, excluding land:

• Renovation of an apartment, 70 to 120 square meters: 1,200 to 2,600 CHF per square meter
• Conversion of a single-family home: CHF 1,800 to 3,200 per square meter
• New construction in wood: CHF 2,800 to 4,800 per square meter

These ranges depend heavily on location, structural stability, finish standards, and time constraints. Minimum budget buffers of 10 to 15 percent are more realistic than any gaudy calculation.

Table: Project types in comparison

Project type	Area	Budget range CHF/m²	Duration Planning	Duration of construction	Energy standard	CO2 aspect rough*
Housing renovation city	70–120 m²	1,200–2,600	6–12 weeks	8–16 weeks	GEAK B to A	medium, highly dependent on usage
Single-family home conversion in the agglomeration	120–180 m²	1,800–3,200	8–14 weeks	12–24 weeks	Minergie modernization	medium, improvement through cover
Wooden new building country	150–220 m²	2,800–4,800	12–20 weeks	6–9 months	Minergie-P	low to medium, depending on PV
Chalet revitalization	90–160 m²	2,000–3,800	10–16 weeks	4–8 months	GEAK C to A	medium, transport dominant

*Estimate of material selection and energy source, not a certified LCA.

Careful renovation instead of radical gutting

Many old buildings have qualities that cannot be replicated: proportions, window divisions, staircase details. Gabriel works according to the principle of minimal intervention with maximum effect:

• Rearrange installations, not everywhere.
• Load-bearing interventions only if they are functionally crucial.
• Maintain surfaces with substance and supplement them in a targeted manner.

This preserves the soul and value, while noticeably improving energy efficiency.

Sustainability without a raised finger

For Gabriel, ecology is not a label, but a life-cycle calculation. Three levers take immediate effect:

• Less material, but better material.
• Well-planned building technology that does what is needed.
• Maintenance and repair are taken into account.

What's often forgotten is user behavior. Rooms with intuitive operating logic are used more energy-efficiently. A clear switch plan has more impact than the tenth app.

Cooperation with crafts and industry

Good projects stand or fall with the people on site. Gabriel keeps the trades involved early on:

• Joinery: prototypes, edges, joints, surface patterns.
• Electrical and building services engineering: cable routes, maintenance access, secure reserves.
• Painting and plastering: sample areas, color fastness, cleaning tests.
• Natural stone work: edge processing, bearing pattern, joint pattern.

Transparency in tenders builds trust. Payment based on milestones, quality controls with checklists, and rapid resolution of deviations. No micromanagement, but clear responsibilities.

Lighting planning as an underestimated game changer

Many living spaces are dazzlingly bright yet dark. How does this fit together? Wrong lighting, wrong heights, unclear functions. Gabrel's approach:

• 300 to 500 lux for work, 100 to 200 lux for relaxation.
• Indirect ceiling illumination instead of spots over all surfaces.
• Warm white 2700 to 3000 Kelvin in living areas, 3500 to 4000 Kelvin for concentrated zones.
• Multilayer circuit: base, accent, task.

The result seems quiet and natural. That's precisely why it's memorable.

Acoustics: Peace is a luxury

Sound isn't just an issue in apartment buildings. It's caused by flanking noise, echoey hallways, and open-plan kitchens with rattling noises. Solutions:

• Textile surfaces, acoustic panels made of wood fibers, targeted absorbers.
• Furniture with acoustically effective back walls.
• Sliding panels with laminated glass and concealed seals.

Effect: Sociability remains, effort decreases. Conversations are clearer, music sounds better, children's noise loses its edge.

Digital planning, analogue execution

BIM models help with clashes and quantities. Renderings clarify moods. But the final decision is usually made with the mockup. A corner with the actual materials, a lighting scene, a handle that actually feels in the hand. These samples prevent expensive surprises on the construction site.

Common pitfalls and how Gabriel avoids them

• Too tight a schedule: delivery times, drying times, permits. Better realistic than optimistic.
• Choose materials based on images, not on test surfaces: test the feel, care, and damage in everyday life.
• Technology without a network concept: switches, VLANs, PoE strategy, backup power.
• Budget without reserves: At least 10 percent buffer.
• No maintenance plan: filter changes, app updates, seal checks, gaskets.

A look into the workshop: his preferred range of materials

• Wood: Ash for light and calm, oak for depth, larch for outdoors.
• Mineral: Warm Jura limestone, robust Vals quartzite, and minimal-joint terrazzo.
• Metal: Anodized aluminum for details, brushed stainless steel in wet areas.
• Surfaces: Oiled wood instead of thick varnish, lime paint instead of plastic look.

This palette does not produce monotony, but rather a calm basic tone in which individuality suddenly becomes visible.

Space economy in small apartments

Small areas can be thought of big:

• Use wall depth: cupboards, technology, niches.
• Sliding solutions instead of hinged doors.
• Multi-purpose furniture, but only where it is actually used daily.
• Reflections and bright ceiling surfaces instead of bright light.

Gabriel often plans a single, multifunctional strip that combines the kitchen, storage, and media. The rest remains open and flexible.

Law and Neighborhood

Neighbors should be involved early on, especially when it comes to roof extensions or facade modifications. Visualizations, shadow studies, and clear technical measures to reduce noise and view control create acceptance. Clear documentation with SIA references and fire protection concepts speeds up the process.

Easy-care is not a break in style

Nothing against spectacular stone types. But if you want long-lasting enjoyment, you should plan realistically for maintenance. When in doubt, the robust option wins:

• Soap and oil instead of specialty chemicals.
• Removable covers instead of disposable pads.
• Repairable fittings and squeak-free tracks.

Beauty that is forgiving lasts longer.

Three short project notes

• Old building in Bern: Lime plaster instead of plasterboard in the bathroom. More moisture buffer, pleasant sound, fewer tile joints.
• Lucerne attic studio: Dormer minimally extended, resulting in light control and a bright ceiling. A perceived increase in space without major renovation.
• Basel terraced house: Basement optimized as a utility room and laundry room, with an acoustically isolated kitchen above. Noticeably quieter.

Why clients come back

Not because of a signature look. But because the projects appear tidy, because decisions are transparent, because defect rates remain low, because the spaces function in everyday life. And because detailed questions don't disappear into emails, but are resolved.

Checklist for a good start

• Record goals: functions, moods, budget range with buffer.
• Scan existing structures: pipes, supporting structure, humidity, sound.
• Allow variants, but limit them in time.
• Plan mock-ups and document decisions.
• Network concept before electrical planning.
• Write a maintenance and cleaning plan before ordering.

Next steps for those interested

Anyone planning a project in Switzerland should clarify the framework early on. What permits are required, what standards apply, and what the timeframe looks like. An initial discussion with clear questions helps assess the scope of the project:

• What absolutely has to be new and what can stay?
• Which tasks does technology take on and which does architecture take on?
• How much is the realistic buffer in time and money?
• Which materials should be allowed to patinate and which should not?

This is how an idea becomes a plan, and a plan becomes a space that you enjoy spending time in every day.