Compagnie O Architecten bvba

House Van Colen At Wingene

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

HOUSE VAN COLEN AT WINGENE

Compagnie O Architects

AREA
370.0 m2

YEAR
2008

LOCATION
Wingene, Belgium

CATEGORY
Houses

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

Text description provided by architect.

This is a house for mister Van Colen, a busy vet and homebuilder at the same time.

It is located in Wingene, a typical West-Flemish country town. The building plot adjoins a spit of valuable agricultural land.

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

The street forms the winter bed of this natural landscape and is therefore situated higher than the actual plot.

It is a typical Flemish reflex to elevate ones private parcel.

The landscape towards the street is, in that way, reshaped into a chain of little artificial hills, each carrying a private dwelling. Every man for himself, God for us all.

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

The "Van Colen" house, however, deviates from this over-all principle because it is inserted onto the natural ground level, lower than the street.

This attitude disassociates the house immediately from its neighbors and thus, the average way of building/ architectural stereotype in the Flemish countryside.

The preservation of the existing topography is a first and clear design-guideline. It leads directly to a different planning of the program of this dwelling:

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

the living-area is situated on the first floor, the bedrooms are located on the ground floor with immediate access to the garden and fields.

If you look at it from the street, most of the living takes place at a "bel-étage". A (not yet constructed) bridge/walkway connects the street and living area.

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

Thanks to the principle of the "bel étage", the kitchen and living room have a panoramic view on the surrounding meadows.

The second design-guideline introduces the well-known Flemish stable typology: an industrial ready-made steel structure built in no time.

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

Under this stack, the homebuilder has organized his own dwelling, building the rooms brick by brick.

This way of working stretches the building-period for sure.However, we prefer the commitment of this homebuilder, which is intriguing to watch, rather than a "normal" building-process, regardless of the pure aesthetic consequences.

House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse

The house is by definition never finished. This is DIY nest building.


House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse
House Van Colen At Wingene
© Frederik Vercruysse


House Van Colen At Wingene
Section 01
House Van Colen At Wingene
Section 02


House Van Colen At Wingene
Ground Floor Plan
House Van Colen At Wingene
First Floor Plan

Compagnie O Architecten bvba
T +32 9 2250749
Compagnie O Architecten bvba
Korenmarkt 8, 9000 Gent, Belgium