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32 THE INFINITESIMAL ISSUE THE DREAM
As always, the project began with high expectations
: each resident was to have a specifi c
role ( interior designer, farmer, administrator,
etc…) and we even planned to create an advisory
board which was meant to include the
likes of Luc Schuiten and CO2logic ( to name
but a few ). We were forced to slightly rethink
our plans of inclusiveness though when the
holiday migration hit us hard, although the
brief remained the same.
First and foremost, the project was meant
as an exploratory study into urban community
living, a sort of activist hippie community
for 21 st century living. This meant that
we based the project on the typical semidetached
“Maison de Maitre” prevalent in
Brussels. We were also very keen to build a
place which combined our private and professional
lives, one which refl ected the blurry
lines which existed between our living and
working spaces. This was extended to our
communal public-private partnership : each
couple was to be given a private quarter (complete
with children’s room, parents’ room and
bathroom) whilst all the kitchen, dining area,
living room and garden were open to all.
The key words were : open plan, modular,
organic ( in terms of how the house blended
into its environment ) and referential ( considering
the heritage ). Similarly to the magazine,
we wanted our house to be functional,
operating along the lines of the “less is more”
dictum. Needless to say we gave strong consideration
to the project’s overall sustainability
and environmental impact, although
having fun and trying out something new was
just as intrinsic.
Getting down to specifi cs, we had a couple
of imperatives. We all were keen on a common
library, a large dining area able to seat us all, a
greenhouse and botanical garden, a children’s
playground, as much green space as possible
and an indoor basketball court (the building’s
original structure lent itself perfectly for this
last request). Lots of space and an unrestricted
fl ow of light were essential.
After close to two and a half months, we
fi nally opened the doors to our dreamed-up
miniaturised den end of July… all we need
now is to fi gure out how to downsize ourselves.
(NL)
Previous pages
01. Maison du Word in full view
These pages
02. Aerial view of the
basketball court-come-lounge, complete
with wall-mounted library
03. The garden-facing facade
04. View of the interior from the main entrance
02.
The original arcades.
The indoor basketball court, a central
feature in the renovation process.