Living and work area, Egide Meertens

View from the street side.

Words from the Designer

Due to the ever-growing customer base and the increasing number of staff, the old offices became too small. A new space for the firm became a necessity and resulted in the construction of a separate building, behind the existing office-outhouse.

Because of the construction of this new volume, the space at the back is divided. A courtyard was made in the enclosed space between the existing building and the new one. The existing house looks out onto this patio, where we opted for a minimally designed plantation. The inflow of light and air, as well as the sidewall in quarry-stone transform this inner area into a pleasant, quiet space, with a high level of intimacy. Behind the new volume, the eye moves over an open, rural landscape with pastures and orchards that are partly located on the property.

View of the entrance of the working area.

The new office building is a restrained rectangular volume, covering two floors. On the ground floor, a roofed passageway leads to the rear-grounds. The front of the building is a closed wall with a small glass section above the passageway. This enhances the private nature of the courtyard even more. The rear-wall is entirely of glass, giving a wide view over the open landscape, towards the horizon. The materials used are concrete, glass and wenge, which go from the passageway through to the cabinet walls inside in order to form a transition area.

The glass wall at the back stretches from the ground to the roof. It is removed from the building in order to obtain a homogeneous view. Both floors in the building are open-plan spaces, with a reception area on the ground floor and workspaces on the top floor. The natural slope of the grounds also plays a major part in the overall configuration. The specific positioning of the building on the slope is such that it looks as if the green slope penetrates the reception area on the ground floor.

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