Dutch architects design a new house around a preserved dune landscape

Paul de Ruiter Architects, together with i29 interior architects, have designed Villa V, a home for a family in Bloemendaal, The Netherlands.

Description from Paul de Ruiter Architects

Park Brederode in the Dutch city Bloemendaal is part of the protected North Holland dune landscape and is a unique living location.

At the heart of this beautiful landscape, Paul de Ruiter Architects has designed a sustainable villa provided with every luxury and comfort.

From the very start it was clear that the landscape around the villa should be preserved as much as possible.

A basement was created for the house and the ground floor is semi-positioned in the slope of the hill.

The first floor towers above the partially glazed ground floor and the undulating dune landscape.

Both the northerly and southerly facades of the first floor are largely made of glass, while the easterly and westerly facades have a more closed character.

The closed facade areas on the first floor are made of coloured, sustainable timber. The glass areas on the ground floor and first floor have exceptionally large sliding components, with the moving parts in light oak.

The details of the glass styles and the upper and lower lines have been kept to a minimum.

The large glass facades ensure a connection between outdoors and indoors; contact with nature is tangible throughout the house. At the same time, the patio in the heart of the villa provides maximum daylight in all the rooms.

Special attention is devoted to energy in Villa V. An efficient and compact structure has been designed with excellent insulation.

The available energy is used effectively, there is geothermal energy storage, a heat pump and solar collectors on the roof, which is covered with moss sedum.

Only natural materials have been used in the building. For example, the facade finishing on the first floor is made of WaxedWood sustainable timber. The moving parts are made of French oak.

The interior is designed by i29. All the interior elements, including the walls, the cupboards in the children’s rooms and the fireplace, are made of veneered plywood.

The wood used at the entrance and the garage has a special origin: it comes from an old ship that was found at a demolition company in the south of Holland and which was bought in its entirety and used in the building.