Woodland HouseWoodland HouseWoodland House
The client, an art curator and collector, wanted a home for her family—spanning two generations—and their many visiting friends. The new house was to be situated within the park of an old country estate, a protected cultural heritage environment, and offer a base for a forward-looking, less formal lifestyle. It should also function as the starting point for a planned open-air art exhibition within the beautiful, cultivated landscape.
The site within the old estate was carefully selected to engage closely with the existing agricultural landscape without interfering with the experience of the park, which stretches from the sea up to the original buildings—dating back to the 17th century—and a large mansion built in the early 19th-century neoclassical style.
Given the completely undisturbed location, we imagined a type of transparent atrium house that could transition from a private, secluded interior to a structure completely open towards nature. Rather than solid walls, we proposed a cantilevered roof floating above the ground. The large, square roof with its atrium opening creates a house without "backsides," where all interior spaces enjoy daylight and views in multiple directions.
The regular rhythm of the structure allows the landscape and surroundings to stand out and constitute the primary impression of the place: the oak hill, the lake, the meadow, the farming fields, and the way the character of the greenery changes with each season.
The house is a solid wood construction throughout, essentially reduced to a glass box with wooden walls and shutters. This allows for the calibration of transparency depending on the season, varying daylight, and current occupation—from intimate family gatherings or entertaining friends to hosting exhibition opening receptions.
