Seeking a home for their young family and their retired parents, one Belgian couple purchased such a property and contemplated their options. Ultimately, they decided they wanted to preserve the history and character of the existing buildings, hiring Aalst-based firm Objekt Architecten to bring their vision to life.

The design brief was relatively unusual. The clients wanted one home for themselves and their children, and a separate but connected “care home” for their elderly parents. This aging-friendly home would need to be set up so that the parents could live there for the rest of their lives, even as their abilities changed. Both homes would require privacy and nice views of the surrounding farmlands while maintaining easy access to each other in case of emergencies.

Objekt Architecten started by preserving as many of the exterior walls of the crumbling buildings as they could. They chose concrete as a primary material to complement the neutral tones and textures of the existing brick, plaster, and mortar. Red terracotta floor tiles and traditional red clay roofing tiles were also brought in to mimic the look and feel of the original elements.

The architects left the appearance of the existing house and barn unchanged, turning the old farmhouse into the care home portion of the estate. Designed with accessibility in mind, the single-level structure contains sleeping quarters, a bathroom, and several spacious storage rooms, as well as covered outdoor areas. This home connects directly to the young family’s new house, which was built within the shell of the adjacent barn.

Clad in a striking bronze-colored aluminum finish, the new volume is set back from the original walls under the same new roof to create covered outdoor walkways. The roof of the care home was extended to stand perpendicular to the new volume. On the other side, the roof rests on the original exterior wall. One long hall links all the bedrooms, and skylights let in an abundance of natural light.

The architects call this project “Old & New,” reflecting both the contrast in historic and modern architectural styles and the contrasting but complementary needs of various generations of the family.

The team explains that “in the new house, the choice fell on a low-maintenance, polished concrete floor. In the sitting area — which houses the lounge and the play area — a contrasting sandblasted oak herringbone parquet was chosen. In the center of the house, we find a royal blue core, which on one side houses a toilet, a cloakroom, and a staircase, and on the other side is part of the kitchen and storage room. The rounded kitchen island, finished in a natural wood tone, has a peach-colored countertop.”

“Together with the brass accents, these give the whole a contemporary, luxurious look. With this renovation, we tried to transform an existing house into a care home where the original residents feel at home and can live a lifetime, while the clients do not have to sacrifice modern comfort and privacy.”

The post Old & New: Belgian Farmhouse Converted into a Contemporary Care Home first appeared on Dornob.

In Ghent, Belgium, a new guest house by Atelier Vens Vanbelle makes a sculptural statement beside a more traditional residence. Its exterior contrasts with the main brick volume in just about every way but somehow complements it at the same time, and its interiors are just as delightful.

The client, who works in the film business, wanted to host international guests in style without sacrificing privacy within his own home. What the studio served up fills that criteria and then some, offering up guest quarters, a screening room, and a lookout tower in a compact package that takes up very little space in the yard.

“The location is very idyllic, with the Schelde (river) flowing behind the romantic garden on the one hand and a castle view on the other,” the architects say. “The French-style house had a garden wall behind which an old dilapidated garage and shed stood in a wild garden. A lost and forgotten corner, but still this place had everything to be the ideal location for the guest house: cool setting, privacy, space, and view.”

“This project remains close to the reality of the owner, and as a guest, you literally descend into an alienating underground world before the ultimate log cabin is shown. Guests enter the new garden shed and bicycle shed through the living room of the client, after which they descend a staircase and end up in a long underground corridor. The disorientation is complete. A first surprise awaits them when they arrive in a small cinema hall with red curtains. David Lynch is not far away. Opposite there is a small, nice bar with an equally strange character.”

The spiral staircase then leads to a completely wood-lined guest space inspired by the cozy enveloping atmosphere of a cave. Instead of framing standard interior walls, the architects stacked laminated wood throughout the interiors for a chunky, sculptural effect. In fact, the whole guest house was built this way in the architects’ studio using four-centimeter thick slabs of wood, “layer by layer,” before it was transported to the site.

Two large round windows offer views of the landscape and of the home. If you continue ascending the staircase from there, you’ll find yourself at the top of a “lookout point” that’s actually an outdoor shower. The Corten steel facade of the guest house offers protection from the elements, and gives it an earthy feeling among the surrounding trees.

The architects add that “this project was designed as a kind of cinematic experience in which you are catapulted from one atmosphere into another, and which responds strongly to your feelings. One elongated surprise with a guest house that stays as far away from a typical hotel room as possible. Here, you are briefly away from the world.”

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The owners of this rather lovely old house in Brussels, Belgium, wanted easier access and better views to their beautiful back garden, and needed to update key interior bathroom and kitchen spaces. In a single architectural stroke, this wrapping home addition by EXAR Architecture (images by Marc Detiffe) adds contemporary functions and lovely contrast to the existing structure.

The effect is surprisingly understated from the street, preserving the historic facade for pedestrians and neighbors, but adding a dynamic, almost-secret and highly-functional component to the back of the building.

Big modern windows with black trim, topped with rusted steel, play off of existing brick and stucco exterior, twisting to enclose the cleanly-revamped upper level (bathroom) and open up the freshly-renovated lower one (kitchen).

More from the architects

“By developing a language in counterpoint to the existing style, we wanted to reinforce the coexistence between the modern and the old. Steel by its smoothness and its neatness makes it possible to create pure lines and movements of plans. The layout of the bathroom, the kitchen and the dining room are maintained but largely open to the garden, offering wide framed views of the interior of the very vegetal island.”

About EXAR

“EXAR architecture studies a limited number of projects to ensure a complete and tailor-made follow-up. The desire to provide individual responses to each project makes it possible to transcend constraints and offer a unique and poetic personality. Our field of intervention, from structural work to works of art, reflects this approach. With this in mind, we have set up a team with different and complementary qualities (architectural, technical, and decorative) which allows us to strive for more coherence and harmony.”

“Whether in the context of promotions with a studied budget, high-end projects (with choice of furniture and works of art), the upgrading of buildings to specific projects, our approach is part of the active support of our customers. The diversity of projects is essential to the vitality of EXAR.”

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A compact geometric house tucked into a tranquil field in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium features an inner metal structure that’s detached from the skin, holding onto warmth to cut back on energy consumption. NU architecturetelier designed the house to be a catalyst for heat, using sandwich panels like those normally seen in industrial buildings as insulation to result in walls that are a whopping 25 centimeters (9.8 inches) thick.

Expansive windows cover the south and east sides of the home to draw in as much sunlight as possible during the day, storing it in the walls for slow release at night to eliminate the need for any other heat source. The glazing is set back from the facade with significant overhangs to shade it during the summer.

The house’s skin is made of sandwich panel in a sort of snake scale pattern, with pops of bright color in the form of neon green doors punctuating its neutral tone. “Without falling into the syndrome of a Tupperware energy home with superfluous technological novelties, this house demonstrates that spatial and visual relationships can be realized by going into direct dialogue with the surrounding context,” say the architects. “A barn quietly anchored into the landscape.”

It’s also a great example of how a house that appears quite small from the outside can feel very spacious throughout the interior, with high ceilings, pale wood, built-in storage and lofts giving it a sense of openness.

“This project concerns a new family house designed according to the passive house standard. It’s a compact home that acts as a catalyst of heat. To do this, the exterior finish has a dark tint, and the metal structure is completely detached from the skin to prevent heat loss. Sandwich panels, normally used in industrial buildings (fridges), are used as insulation . Despite its considerable thickness (25 cm) and the numerous preparatory details it induces, implementation will be quick and easy.”

“Indoor climate and ventilation are completely controlled, with almost no other source of heat except for the energy stored in materials and redelivered slowly at night. The North facade is relatively closed, this in contrast to the South and West high glazed glazing which unfolds at the corner of the building. Where the sun is stronger, a setback of the glazing protects against glare and overheating. Implementing the detached metal structure, the parking basement in concrete and the skin in sandwich panel also allows easy future upgrading.”

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A Flemish barn in the countryside, built in the 1800s, was in desperate need of an update. It sits in a high-traffic area next to an historic farm site, and its crumbling appearance prompted the municipality to look for a way to bring it back to its former glory.

An urban expansion is planned for the area, and part of the reason for the renovation was to strengthen the environment and quality in which the barn sits. The firm Arend Groenewegen Architect was called in to make the changes.

It was decided early on in the planning stages that the barn would be renovated into an office space. The space is segmented into two parts, meant to be used as a flexible office space that can be rented out.

It was important to the parties involved in the project that the re-invented structure be full of light, air and open space. The traditional black wooden slats on the building’s exterior allow in light and plenty of natural ventilation. The traditional thatched roof was completely restored to its historic beauty.

As much of the original structure as possible was left in place, with the floor, ceiling, roof, walls and foundation being entirely redone. A wooden cube occupies part of the ground-floor volume, housing the toilets, pantry, office and ventilation system. Underfloor heating keeps the barn looking sleek as it eliminates the need for radiators.

The project was a huge success in the eyes of local residents. Several open houses and exhibitions have drawn in neighbors who appreciate the renewed beauty of the barn and the positive face it puts on the village.

The post Flemish Barn Renovation Brings New Life to Historic Village first appeared on Dornob.

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