Just outside the city center of Mechelen there is a modernist house from the 1950’s designed by Lucien Engels. The renovation of this beautiful house with city garden was done by dmvA.

The modernist design language is a great quality of the building and was of course embraced during the renovation process. The goal of the renovation was to respect the existing design and even strengthen it with a few adaptations.

The house has been renovated according to contemporary needs with some architectural intervention. For example, the existing concrete terrace was replaced by a new terrace construction with a distinct character. The result is a contemporary interpretation of the design of Engels, intensifying the relationship between the garden and the house.

The functions in the house are rearranged and the ground floor has been lowered. The qualities of the split levels are therefore optimally used and this, in combination with the large windows, results in a play of light and level differences.