ETH Zürich   Studio Adam CarusoETH Zürich  Studio Adam CarusoETH Zürich  Studio A. CarusoETHZ   Studio Caruso

At the threshold of the village of Rüti GL stands a quiet industrial building. On its façade, one can just barely make out the words Wollweberei Rüti — a former wool spinning factory that now appears abandoned. Its walls still carry traces of the production, adaptations, and many transformations it has witnessed over more than a century.

The project begins with a territorial ambition: to create a regenerative farm at the scale of the village of Rüti. This vision requires a herd of 300 sheep, not only for landscape management and soil regeneration but also for the production of wool, milk, and cheese. At the same time, the village of Rüti has no access to higher education within 1.5 hours by train, which severely limits opportunities for young people in the region. The idea of combining agricultural production with higher education makes sense — especially in this idyllic setting, where reusing the former wool factory as an agronomy school becomes both a symbolic and practical gesture.

The core architectural idea is to anchor the new program within the existing structure as respectfully as possible. Rather than erasing or drastically altering the old factory, the interventions aim to integrate into it, preserving and celebrating its spatial qualities. The generous industrial volumes are maintained, with minimal additions. Where new elements are introduced, they are clearly readable and reversible. The result is a hybrid space: part learning environment, part productive farm, and part historical artifact.

The energy concept is based on a phased and locally rooted approach. Over several years, the 1850s building is gradually insulated with sheep wool, creating a clear connection between the function of the farm and the materials used in construction.

Underfloor heating is installed in the living and teaching areas, powered by a heat pump connected to the existing Kraftwerk — a former hydropower plant that remains in operation within the building.

Rather than replacing the original windows, they are carefully repaired, and small foam seals are added to reduce air infiltration, preserving their historic character while improving performance.

Architecturally, a major addition is a central circulation core — a staircase that connects all levels and improves accessibility throughout the building.

Moreover, the attic level is reimagined to accommodate guests and visitors. This space becomes a bridge between the local community, the school, and the outside world, supporting temporary stays, workshops, and events.

Finally, the largest architectural intervention addresses the key issue of the complex: the latest storage hall, built in 1982, hides the historic glazed façade from 1916 and casts the main hall into shadow. The intervention is therefore to deconstruct this extension, keep its wooden load-bearing structure, and reuse it to erect a new building with a classic dual-pitched roof. This new volume frees the historic façade and allows natural light to re-enter the main hall. The newly constructed building is dedicated to sheep milking, forming a functional and symbolic link between the herd and the historic fabric of the site.

In short, the project proposes a new rural campus model where farmers, students, researchers, and locals come together. It is a place of production, education, and innovation. It revives the site and responds to the demographic decline that has affected the villages of the Glarus valley since the end of its industrial golden age.

By investigating the history of Glarus it became apparent that the textile industry played a significant role. Described as a pioneer work, the heroic and linear narrative still plays an important role in the canton’s identity today. Inspired by Ursula Le Guin’s concept of the carrier bag, a collection of stories was gathered describing that the Glarnerland isn’t only about the heydays of the industry but also about the possibilities it left behind.

One of the stories to be told is explained by Peter Jenny. In an interview, he mentioned that besides the industrial past, the Glarnerland has the quality of serving as a niche and by that attracting artists and other people involved in the cultural scene. After the textile industry came to a halt at the end of the 20th century, space became available that could be exploited. Examples such as the Palais Jaune in Diesbach in the 1980s or the still active Hollenstein in Ennenda illustrate what Jenny was referring to. Both places offered space to communities of people involved in the cultural sector where they could create their own environment, hidden from the rush in the cities.

Also, the Hänggiturm shows a straightforward way of representing the history of the textile past. Reapplying Ursula Le Guin’s method to analyze the building it became clear that the seemingly perfect appearance of the ensemble has more stories
to tell. The old, original factory building was supposed to serve as a base for the relocated Hänggiturm. As the building was a bit too narrow, it was demolished in the 90s and replaced by a new building with the same appearance. One irregularity that illustrates the orchestration is the large basement with an underground garage.

How does this “Niche” manifest itself?
The relocation of the post office that is currently inhabiting the base of the building offers the possibility to introduce a new use. As an extension of the existing cultural network, a residency for artists is implemented into the partly vacated building. Equipped with small appartements it allows the guests to inhabit the building for any length of time. The floor slab to the basement is cut open to unveil the orchestration and to provide the basement with natural light. The space once used as a garage is reframed into a Werkhalle, ready to be appropriated by the inhabitants, starting with a ceramic workshop in which tiles are produced which are installed on the upper floors. Inspired by the structure of the Chelsea Hotel
the ground floor is transformed into the new Lobby of the building. Together with the existing Anna Göldi Museum in the Hänggiturm, the lobby mediates between the public and the newly implemented internal world. The bar, reception, and collective kitchen on one hand welcome the public of Ennenda into the building and on the other hand, serve as an extension of the inhabitants’ living rooms, enabling a community to form around the residence. The seven existing bathrooms on the upper floors allow the plans to be altered into seven smaller apartments. Equipped with a bed and a small kitchen they provide a basis for the individual occupation of the inhabitants.

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The canton of glarus was strongly influenced by the industry of the cotton manufacture in the 19th century. The former cotton printing plant on the Löntsch in Netstal, Canton Glarus is representative of the industrial ensembles that were built at that time. Unfortunately, many of these have already been destroyed and this ensemble is also not sufficiently protected and is therefore threatened with demolition. The Stöckli AG company, founded around the same time 200m further downstream, has had consistent growth and is therefore strongly interwoven with the village today. However, its possible expansion is limited by the river, the cantonal road and an interwoven residential area. In 1976, the company Stöckli AG bought the old industrial ensemble with the idea of demolishing it if necessary and integrating the area into their production with a new building. In order to prevent this, the potential in preserving this ensemble has to be shown to the company on various levels. Their offices, reception as well as an exhibition space could be brought under one roof in the beautiful interiors of the old industrial ensemble and together with the remaining buildings of the ensemble, the inner courtyard could be made into a village centre for Netstal. This would clarify their corporate identity as a traditional, innovative family business that has grown together with the village to its current size. But before this scenario becomes credible, a new spatial organisation of the site must be sought. The old industrial building, or more precisely the location of the ensemble, must be freed from its function as a potential production space or storage area, as this would inevitably lead to demolition. This is where this diploma project comes in. With a punctual intervention that functions like a catalyst, a rethinking of the company's strategy and a new organisation of the site is initiated. By significantly improving the logistical situation of the heterogeneous Stöckli site (with a new, efficient high-bay warehouse and a new axis that connects production, warehousing and shipping), it opens up new thinking space for the sustainable development of Stöckli AG into a shared future with the village of Netstal.The canton of glarus was strongly influenced by the industry of the cotton manufacture in the 19th century. The former cotton printing plant on the Löntsch in Netstal, Canton Glarus is representative of the industrial ensembles that were built at that time. Unfortunately, many of these have already been destroyed and this ensemble is also not sufficiently protected and is therefore threatened with demolition. The Stöckli AG company, founded around the same time 200m further downstream, has had consistent growth and is therefore strongly interwoven with the village today. However, its possible expansion is limited by the river, the cantonal road and an interwoven residential area. In 1976, the company Stöckli AG bought the old industrial ensemble with the idea of demolishing it if necessary and integrating the area into their production with a new building. In order to prevent this, the potential in preserving this ensemble has to be shown to the company on various levels. Their offices, reception as well as an exhibition space could be brought under one roof in the beautiful interiors of the old industrial ensemble and together with the remaining buildings of the ensemble, the inner courtyard could be made into a village centre for Netstal. This would clarify their corporate identity as a traditional, innovative family business that has grown together with the village to its current size. But before this scenario becomes credible, a new spatial organisation of the site must be sought. The old industrial building, or more precisely the location of the ensemble, must be freed from its function as a potential production space or storage area, as this would inevitably lead to demolition. This is where this diploma project comes in. With a punctual intervention that functions like a catalyst, a rethinking of the company's strategy and a new organisation of the site is initiated. By significantly improving the logistical situation of the heterogeneous Stöckli site (with a new, efficient high-bay warehouse and a new axis that connects production, warehousing and shipping), it opens up new thinking space for the sustainable development of Stöckli AG into a shared future with the village of Netstal.

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In unmittelbarer Umgebung des Hotels Marriott entwichkeln sich in den 70er, 80er und 90er Jahren um und auf dem Platzspitz verschiedene Szenen. Züri brännt 1980. Das Marriott ist Teil des gescheiterten Infrastrukturprojekts Ypsilon und dem Milchbucktunnel. Welten treffen hier aufeinander, voneinander entkoppelt. Die Strategie des temporären Besetzens und Nutzens von Freiräumen in der Stadt wurde in der Jugendbewegung der 80er Jahren oft genutzt. Mit leichten Interventionen wird an unbeachteten Orten Unerwartetes geschaffen. Sie spielen sich in unterschiedlichen zeitlichen und räumlichen Grössenordnungen ab.

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This project focuses on different care-related issues in the Triemlifussweg neighbourhood: environmental, pedagogical, material and architectural. It proposes various interventions, on a small or large scale, which are derived from observations or interviews with users and inhabitants. The interventions are often economical or light in terms of material and expenditure. They can be seen as easily implemented strategies, and therefore also easily adjustable to the needs of the users. These strategies need to be tested, modified, adapted to improve at best the daily life of the inhabitants, so that they can take care of themselves and their loved ones, their homes and their cities, their planet and its ecosystems.

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With the world climate changing, resources getting scarce and humans exploiting nature, we need to rethink farming and how to change our behavior towards nature. We're not the only ones.
By using the existing storage building as a foundation, the project becomes a self sufficient machine, powered by solar energy. With the aquaponic system it is possible to harvest more and use less.

The big heart of the machine connects the lower existing part with the upper new housings - a cohabitational space offering a habitat for plants, animals and humans. Everything is connected, everything is necessary and plays a role in the whole. 

Discover this cosmos of cohabitation and find yourself in richness and diversity. A symbiosis of plants, animals, humans, architecture and technology.

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Book Final Submission
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Book Pin Up 3
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Book Pin Up 2
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Collective Individuals
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Booklet
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