moderne villa stijlvol wonen

Stairway to heaven

Standing at my drawing table in our current office space, I really realize what the function of light is. Not just for the design of a home, but as a primary need in the life of every person. The rear facade on the ground floor only consists of glass, giving daylight free rein. I am never tired and the heating rarely comes on.

 

The Dutch Building Decree stipulates that every room must have 10% daylight. We go well beyond that in every design. Light has become a starting point. Every design starts with an inventory of the position of the sun at any time of the day.

That is why we like to “make holes in roofs”. That may sound strange, but if the light is not naturally provided on a plot, you must ensure that the light comes to you.

We recently had an assignment for the design of a villa in the woods. Building was allowed within a section of seventeen by seventeen meters. We delivered a design with a penthouse-like roof terrace and an atrium in the middle of the house. That atrium provides a sea of ​​light in the house. And by living upstairs and sleeping downstairs, in the spring you look out at the bird nests in the treetops and in the summer you lie in a cool bedroom.
We also once designed a staircase to the roof with a beautiful, spacious light street. During the day you enjoy the light, in the evening you count the stars through the glass ceiling. A stairway to heaven.

The same applies to solar tubes that cleverly capture the little light that is available and thus create lighting in the darkest places in the house.

The open construction of today where as much light as possible and “outside” is let in creates new chances and possibilities. In which not only aesthetics, but also the smart handling of human needs and energy consumption play an important role.

An office space where we fully focused on letting in natural light is among other things this project. But also this project.