The project originated in Miedzianka, a town where, after WWII, the Soviets ruthlessly mined uranium for the construction of the atomic bomb. A chaotic network of tunnels emerged beneath the town. Mining shafts sprouted up in between residential buildings.
In the 1970s, parts of the city were so criss-crossed by underground tunnels that some buildings began to collapse. During this time, people were relocated from there. What was left of the town was demolished and Miedzianka virtually disappeared.
The whole story, which remained a mystery for a long time, was described forty years later by a Polish writer and so captivated the investors—art lovers 
and interior designers—that they decided to build their home there. The project was conceived as three independent volumes: the owners’ house, a bookstore, and a creative work house.

During a site visit, we discovered mysterious foundations on the plot which, when superimposed on historical maps of the mining tunnels, proved to be the remains of a planned but never completed mine shaft. This discovery inspired us to reinterpret the verticality of the former shafts by stacking the project’s three intended functions into a single volume. 

The building was located in a place that was not in danger of caving in. The small building footprint (30 m²) allowed for minimal intervention in the site and the preservation of its original, slightly wild character, with the exposed foundations left visible.

During a site visit, we discovered mysterious foundations on the plot which, when superimposed on historical maps of the mining tunnels, proved to be the remains of a planned but never completed mine shaft. This discovery inspired us to reinterpret the verticality of the former shafts by stacking the project’s three intended functions into a single volume. 

The building was located in a place that was not in danger of caving in. The small building footprint (30 m²) allowed for minimal intervention in the site and the preservation of its original, slightly wild character, with the exposed foundations left visible.

During a site visit, we discovered mysterious foundations on the plot which, when superimposed on historical maps of the mining tunnels, proved to be the remains of a planned but never completed mine shaft. This discovery inspired us to reinterpret the verticality of the former shafts by stacking the project’s three intended functions into a single volume. 

The building was located in a place that was not in danger of caving in. The small building footprint (30 m²) allowed for minimal intervention in the site and the preservation of its original, slightly wild character, with the exposed foundations left visible.

The shaft and its surrounding space quickly began to function as a meeting place, particularly for the displaced community, as well as a link between people and their histories. The art bookshop became a local cultural hub. The foundations embedded in the landscape, which until recently only recalled the dark history of Miedzianka, also turned into a place of joy and play, something that had been taken from the town more than half a century earlier.