The town house consists of two terraced houses, divided over a first floor and basement. The entrance stairs led up and downstairs there was a barely passable basement space, says Kumiki. The architectural firm’s first intervention was to change the direction of the stairs: not up but down. The result is that after entering and subsequent descent, an immediate connection is made with the garden, the architects say.
The aim of the second intervention was to transform all spaces into fully-fledged living floors. To this end, the foundation floor has been renewed, the first floor has been raised locally and the load-bearing walls have been strategically broken through. As a final intervention, a void and a high window were created at the rear, for which purpose the balcony at the rear facade was removed.
High-contrast interior
Kumiki has moved the main living areas from the first floor to the basement, so that the family almost always experiences a connection with the garden. The void with a five-meter-high Meranti frame ensures that daylight can reach deep into the house – and especially the basement. The generous open space created also connects both floors with each other; not only visually, but also actually with an open staircase from Radiplex.
The interior is characterized by contrasts. The open staircase finds a counterpart in a newly installed, ‘intimate’ staircase, which is covered with soft blue felt. This staircase and the blue alcoves on both floors lead to the private areas, such as the bedrooms and bathroom.
Reuse and recovery
To give the open spaces a sense of structure, industrial steel frames have been reused and supplemented with custom-made wooden portals. In this way, Kumiki has created transparent dividing elements that define the space without disrupting the openness. As many materials as possible were carefully removed during the renovation and then given a new place in the interior.
Despite the rigorous changes to the layout of the house, many characteristic elements have been retained. The ceiling with plaster ornaments has been restored, the original wall finishes have been restored and the wooden floor, interior doors and steel frames have been reused. In addition, the raw shell has been exposed in various places, such as the concrete basement walls and the rough brickwork.
With the project, Kevin Veenhuizen and Tuana Bukem Yildiz of architectural firm Kumiki wanted to show “the rich character of pre-war homes”. At the same time, “by determinedly fulfilling the spatial wishes of the clients” they have created a contemporary ‘Rotterdam loft’ with an area of 273 m2.2 realised.
