For this family home, derksen|windt architects created a design in which a typical house shape was adapted so that the home ultimately revolves entirely around sightlines and the experience of the sun and the surroundings.

The house was newly built in Wilgenrijk Maassluis, a large development where plots are occasionally released for private clients. On this beautiful waterfront plot, we positioned the house relative to the plot specifications, resulting in a more spacious southwest-facing garden. This allowed the design based on views and light to be expressed even more strongly in the design. The clients also shared a passion for this from the very beginning, ensuring a very good rapport.

The house was designed based on the experience of the spaces, both inside and out. For instance, one arrives at an entrance facade that is somewhat more closed but nevertheless welcomes through a sequence of protruding and recessed sections that also vary in height. Once inside, this continues. The spaces are interlocked, allowing users to move effortlessly from zone to zone. On the upper floors, the view of the surroundings has been consistently maintained; whereas normally every square meter often needs to be filled, the clients fully embraced this approach. Back outside, the southwest facade in particular is dynamic and entirely shaped by views and sunlight. An overhang that simultaneously serves as a kind of loggia on the upper floor, staggered facade sections, and windows that constantly vary in size yet follow the overall measurement system.

The brickwork has become a defining yet defining element of the design. Everything is based on the dimensions of the brick, which is laid in a beautiful vertical stretcher bond that is rarely used anymore, while creating a chic and serene appearance. The brickwork resulted in a size of 38 cm, which has been consistently applied throughout the facade. Horizontally between the floors, in the staggered extensions and recessed sections, but also vertically in the column at the corner.

This makes the design very cleverly passive: opening up to the southwest but with overhangs for the summer, and more closed towards the north. The integrated solar panel roof stands out, and with a ground heat exchanger within a very well-insulated shell, it is a very sustainable home.