THE FACTS ABOUT VIEW HOUSE

Switzerland

It is logical that Zermatt should be among the more traditional winter-sport resorts. It has a skiing history stretching back a century; and mountaineers were drawn to it much earlier - notably from Britain - by that pre-eminent Alpine trademark, the Matterhorn. More remarkable is that alongside its characteristic wooden farm buildings, 19th-century hotels and grand chalets Zermatt should have the most dramatic contemporary apartments available for rent in the Alps. Heinz Julen's great-grandfather built a typical farmhouse below the Sunnegga in 1900, before the skiers arrived on its slopes. With some subtle improvements by Julen, a 39-year-old designer and artist, the building survives as Chez Vrony, a restaurant run by one of Julen's sisters and her husband, and justly celebrated as among the best in Alpine ski areas. Julen's first constructions - little huts - were built nearby; and since 1992 his striking work has become part of the fabric of the village of Zermatt. After creating the Vernissage, a faux Manhattan loft inserted into a basement as a cinema/gallery/nightclub, Julen began designing apartment buildings. His first, View House, completed in 1994, is perhaps the best of what is a superb bunch. One of Julen's design precepts is 'to bring the Alpine scenery into the residence', and the huge windows of View House take full advantage of its location. The panorama has lost a few of its 180 degrees to recent construction, but each of the building's four apartments has a terrace from which to view the Matterhorn's best side. A private lift, running up from a tunnel cut into the rock, gives individual access to each apartment. Their interiors combine cool, technical materials (glass, galvanised steel) with warmer woods and curious artisanal features designed by Julen himself. Much of the furniture is made from scaffolding poles, or something very similar; dining tables have mock-Georgian, pine legs secured by long, threaded rods and bolts; plumbers' fittings become decorative devices for the chandeliers and wall 'icons'; and the cupboard catches demand to be operated, just so you can watch the apparently home-made mechanism work. Those features are affecting; the bold shape and perspective of the spaces are awe-inspiring. But the apartments are also practical and well-fitted (dishwasher, wood-burning stove), although keen cooks will find the kitchen areas small. The Blue apartment, a four/five-person duplex at the top, is the best; but the others, all four-person, two-bedroom apartments also named for the colour of their soft furnishings, suffer only by comparison. CONTACT View House (00 41 79 235 1727; fax: 27 967 8700; www.viewhouse.ch) from SFr550 (about £250) per night, including breakfast THE SKIING For a description of the ski area, see Apparthotel Zurbriggen