Egide Meertens Architecten

This project concerns the new build of a large, open single-family house, located in the "Beukendael" development in Tongeren. As regards the design, the client wanted a clear, functional layout. The rooms that would be used most, such as kitchen, dining room and lounge, are at the rear of the building, with an open view of the patio, landscaped garden and swimming pool. The garage, office and a separate TV room are located at the front. However, the different rooms are linked in such a way that there is no direct line of sight through the house. As a result, there is always a surprise effect when entering the different living spaces.

The starting point for the design stage of this project was the experience value of each individual room, which runs smoothly from one to the next, even though they all have their differences. The transit lines were placed along the functional spaces, so that the function of each space, which also has a different interpretation as regards the appearance in each case, is also different from the other ones.
Alignment was another focus point. The kitchen, the cabinet (which the clients already owned) and the projecting window of the reading room are aligned. Perpendicular to this line, the built-in stereo cabinet, the built-in hearth, the wall along the stairs and the hinge point of the large rotating front door are also aligned. On the axis of these two lines, the open fire is positioned at the centre of the house. As a result, the open fire can be seen from the different rooms.

The spatial perspective was obtained by playing with different floor levels and not with chaotically changing ceiling levels, except for the entrance, where the height of the room is used in an optimal manner by involving the entrance hall on two levels. Even though the house has en enclosed character as a whole, this gives a greater openness to the entrance hall. Moreover, the night-time space was systematically involved with the daytime space on the ground floor.

Since the house is located in a housing development and the owners want to protect their privacy, it was decided to let natural light into the bedrooms through enclosed patios. These patios are not visible for the outside world. Due to the absence of windows in the outer walls on the upper floor, the massive nature of the building is accentuated. Also the glued, veined bricks contribute to this. Due to the colour tints in the bricks, the volume radiates a certain warmth.

The house was designed from the inside to the outside. The outside walls are nothing more than the formal reflection of the internal layout. So there is no question of façade architecture.
The layout of volumes was well thought-out, as a result of the client’s ample programme. The pool house was positioned in the axis of the projecting closed volume. The closed volume prevents visitors from having direct contact with the swimming pool from the living room. The pond, however, is directly involved with the living space. The arrangement of the volume divides the plot into different outer spaces. Residual spaces are avoided.