The assignment can easily be formulated. A journalist, owner of a terraced house in the centre of Ghent, bought an AGA stove because of a great love for cooking. He wishes to build a kitchen around it.
The classic Flemish rear building with kitchen with skylight has to be replaced.
A new bathroom also needs to be included in the extension.
The new volume situates the kitchen not directly adjacent to the back of the terraced house but at the back of the garden. The entire surface of the small parcel will be tangible and usable. An outdoor room will be included in the sequence of spaces. Maximum light enters the existing and new spaces.
The kitchen diner is located in the back of the volume. The freestanding red AGA is accompanied by an oak worktable with sink, a compact cabinet volume contains the storage room.
The bathroom connects to the existing house and enjoys a view of the outside space. A bathtub is sunk into the ground, a wooden platform on top of it makes it usable as an open shower. The connection between the house and the kitchen is furnished with a library cupboard and small workbench.
The single storey volume is executed as a continuous movement of sloping roof surfaces with different ridge heights. The use of materials is rigid: painted brickwork for the walls, slate for the floor, painted plywood for the ceilings. The carpentry is carried out in naturally greying wood. The opening parts are painted in different colours. Two sliding windows allow the kitchen-garden corner to be fully opened.
