Winner - K Residence
Kalmthout, Belgium
Architect Agency: Eva Koch Architecten
Metal Builder: Baeten-Van Es
Product Solutions used: Avantis Smartline 70 windows and Confort Smartline sliders
Photographer: Home Sweet Home Magazine - Nick Cannaerts
Controlling the incidence of light was an important aspect of this design. This wide plot is oriented north and is indeed beautiful among the mature trees. This made it a bit of a puzzle to keep enough light. We were allowed to build very wide: the house is now about 40m wide. That long space is now an important feature that the children are of course very happy with; they can do some serious sprints here in the house. This north-facing orientation is particularly nice because it gives us a rear facade with many and large windows. With a south-facing house, this would be a lot of hassle with screens, roofs, air conditioning… now we are surrounded by greenery across the entire width, without extra efforts to keep it livable. The south side is almost completely closed, except of course for the spacious office.
Living spaces and office are nicely separated by the entrance hall: that is a practical choice that I have made very consciously. Every room in this house has its own place, at the same time everything is connected. Socializing is nice but being able to withdraw somewhere in the house can sometimes be necessary. Bringing contrasts together to reinforce each other is quite a big part of the story here.
We have to maintain a balance. For the architect, functionality weighs heavily on quality of life. I personally find practical design and optimal use of spaces more important than the use of the most exclusive materials. Take the floor here: it is a solid wooden herringbone pattern, but it is made from residual wood, so that it remains affordable and sustainable. The same goes for the kitchen and bathroom. For the kitchen worktop and the bathroom finish I opted for solid core: very hard, user-friendly and beautiful, but less expensive than the usual materials or natural stone. Building is getting more and more expensive. When people have to choose between expensive materials or, for example, an extra room, I tend to convince them towards the latter. Please note: exclusive materials and pieces can be very beautiful and definitely offer added value, but if I can choose, they are not at the top of the hierarchy. Ultimately, a house should not depend too much on the materials and colors. By playing with the spaces as an architect, you must be able to transcend that, so that a house in completely different shades comes into its own.
Limiting the number of different materials also provides extra peace and clarity. That is why you mainly see the same light tones in this house or, more playfully; the blue-green of the kitchen that refers to the green-blue in the living room. The floor was largely extended, except in the kitchen and the office where travertine was used. For the lighting, we mainly chose surface-mounted fixtures. In this way we largely avoided the additional cost of drilling, grinding… It is also a flexible way to let the spaces grow with you. Are you tired of something? Then you hang something else.
A certain uniformity has therefore been chosen, but that of course does not prevent the spaces from standing on their own. That remains an important aim: to give each space its own identity, organically fitting into the whole.
Special Mention - Mango House Seychelles
LXR Hotels & Resorts, Seychelles
Architect: JT+Partners Architectural and Engineering Consultant
Metal Builder: Innovative Glass and Aluminium LLC
Product Solutions used: SOLEAL windows, sliders and doors, LUMEAL sliders and GEODE façade
Photographer: JT+Partners Architectural and Engineering Consultant
LXR Mango House is a small luxury boutique hotel built on an existing property on the southwestern side of Mahé Island. The property originally belonged to Italian travel and fashion photographer Gian Paolo Barbieri, whose spacious manor house has been transformed into the hotel’s main public building. The project consists of a shoreline development with five G+1 bungalows, underground sewage/water treatment plant and ground only ancillary block which houses generator, transformer and Staff facilities. Comprises of a main residential villa with a gym and guest rooms, separate kitchen and staff facilities, and a series of guest bungalows. Our distinguished client’s brief has generated an opulent residence of luxurious spaces and exquisite finishes. The main constraints of the plot are the accessibility and the environmental approach. The nature is very tropical offering a challenging landscape throughout the site. Greenery is dominant and covers most of the existing buildings. An access road has been implemented from the main road that serves the site and the surrounding plots. There are four existing buildings on site with one service area: the main house, the bungalows and the additional small house on the extension plot. Apart from the above-mentioned structures the project involves sea defense protection schemes on the beach side, an access road with the plot and some landscape features. “The project is a dream project for any architect, and at the same time, it is challenging because of its location, surrounding, and integration with nature” says Joe Tabet. The House has an eclectic vernacular contemporary style bringing together local, colonial and international design. From its perch on the rocks where the tropical breeze meets the private beach, the development immerses in the dramatic location and optimizes unspoiled views across the Indian Ocean. The stunning landscape and seascape inspire a light touch. The form of the project derives naturally from the curvature of the contour on the site with the intention that the bungalows appear to be lightly placed upon the steep rocks as well as overhanging the water’s edge. The design reflects the opulence of the required brief and takes the most advantage of the surroundings. The buildings distribution and rotation along the site beach edge offers the widest views towards the sea for each residence. Along with the environmental authorities of the Seychelles, JT+Partners carefully looked at the site and identified which tree could be relocated, removed, or kept, without touching the main Mango tree (which is around 150 years old – one of the oldest on the island) existing in the property). TECHNAL was approached during Schematic Design Stage to provide the required solutions and systems for the project. TECHNAL provided a minimalistic sliding system, LUMEAL, for the entire project. Noting that the project comprises of several components the advantages were that the LUMEAL frames come in large sizes, they have a diversity in the applications with a very high performance. TECHNAL are very professional and supportive. They provided the adequate solutions for the project considering the local tropical environment while considering the approved budgets. The overall experience was very satisfactory, and the results can speak for themselves.
