COHOUSE BOCKSTAEL

Renovation of a 1912 townhouse and atelier in Brussels to a cohouse.

Location             Brussels, BE  
Date                    2018 - 2019
Client                  Private commission   
Architect            ALTSTADT
Phase                 Completed  
Surface              270 m²

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North of Brussels, a modest 1912 house. However, indescribably, it seems to have a firm temperament. Its red windows make a statement on the street. More than a century later, how to get accepted from the house? How to make it your nest, without hurting it?

All of the new interventions are surgical, carefuly inserted and attached to the existing, powerful elements. Yet, they're playful, explosive even. To dialogue with the many strong features of the house - the stained glass, the outstanding mosaic floorings - the new elements must not shy away. They adopt an equally strong material palette: inox, mirrors, marble... and are so merging with the house, while preserving its initial character. The addition of a thin balcony on the back facade, creates a direct link between the house and the courtyard, and thus generates a new relation between the house and the warehouse, now turned into workshops and apartments.