Simple Volumes for Effective Living – House S, Netherlands

New home designs are usually striking for their simplicity and their natural look, the seamless way in which they blend and become one with their landscape. This is very much the case of House S by Grosfeld van der Velde Architecten. It was completed in 2008, it has two levels and it sits quietly, unassumingly, on the coast of Breda, in the southern Netherlands. The path that leads up to the house in a sinew fades away as one starts exploring the interior of this simple architectural volume. The foundation of the house follows the gentle slopes of the site, with part of the lower level buried within the soil, a day area encased in window glazing and an open wooden patio with a wonderful set of lounge chairs casually reclining under the Northern sun.

As most new home designs, this one is all about location, too. it sits on the edge of the Asterplads plain, in Breda’s Haagse Beemden neighborhood. The day area was elevated above ground level, to optimally benefit from the view of the surrounding natural environment. The residents work at home, so the house was specifically designed to accommodate residential, as well as commercial purposes. There is a clear separation between private and business areas, which “do touch, but never cross.” According to the design team, “the working space is partly situated below grade, fit with a horizontal orientated window. Providing a beautiful view on the environment and allowing for a bright, natural lit lower level.”

(Source: GrosfeldVanDerVelde.nl)