A spatial house design for a small Dutch building plot offering a large variety of rooms. This required a non-standard dwelling layout.

The transformation of the Delft Railway Zone includes the creation of a new residential district: Nieuw Delft. The neighborhood of House CB005 is characterized by its small scale, family friendly living environment, narrow streets and typical Delft row houses. House CB005 is designed for a 5,1m wide and 10m long building plot, which is a typical plot size in the Netherlands. However the layout of the house is far from standard, because of the client's specific wishes.

Unique spaces in a split-level house

The client's wish was to build a modern family house containing a large variety of separate rooms. The challenge was to achieve this multiplicity of rooms and still create a spatial house. The house is organised around a landing stairs connecting split-level floors and building up a sequence of internal spaces. The result is a playfull home interior, with a large variety of visually connected and unique spaces and many nooks.

Abstract bay windows in a solid brick facade

Large bay windows architecturally define the building’s exterior and interior. The modern and abstract bay windows of smooth metal cladding form a strong contrast to the solid, rough brick facade. The house has a hospitable expression thanks to these large bay windows, which create a strong connection between the street and life going on indoors. Surprising as it may seem to some, it is actually quite usual for Dutch households to keep their window curtains opened far into the evenings. Tradition has it that this habit results from protestant culture (nothing to hide), but in any case it provides Dutch streets with their friendly atmosphere.