Villa Rotterdam: Ooze Architects Wraps a House With a Spectacular Geometric Skin

We were struck when we spotted this beautiful example of modern design meeting classic construction recently on <a href="http://www.dezeen.com">Dezeen</a>. An incredible residential renovation and extension undertaken by <a href="http://www.ooze.eu.com/">Ooze Architects</a> of Paris and Rotterdam, the new design takes a collection of buildings and wraps them in a geometric skin to create a succinct and unified edifice. Ooze's updated building features prefabricated solid timber panels, a lush green roof and a softwood cladding built from fast-growing wood treated with a high-tech process to increase its construction durability. Jump ahead for the incredible photos, as well as the story behind the timeless<a href="http://www.inhabitat.com/architecture"> home</a>.

Ooze Architects was first hired to design a new kitchen, but the <a href="http://www.inhabitat.com/architecture">architects'</a> scope of work quickly evolved into a complete renovation and extension - even though the house had been extended several times in the past few decades.

Their design was based on the maximum building envelope: ridge height, as well as the depth of the extension was defined by the zoning plan. “We simply connected these points,” architect Eva Pfannes said of the project.

The new iteration consists of two perpendicular building volumes with a pitched roof, a lower semicircle building in between connecting the two parts, and several extensions on the other side in the angle of the hook-shaped house.

The layout has been totally reorganized around a central void, and a new staircase on the north wall provides a connection to the first and second floor.

The pre-defined maximum envelope guided the form of the new skin, which wraps around the old house and shapes the interior spaces, including a new kitchen and an increase the number of bedrooms.

To achieve their precise form and a speedy delivery, Ooze used prefabricated solid timber panels (Lenotec) for the structure of the skin (roof, walls and floor). The home essentially arrived to the site as a simple prefabricated kit.

The choice material also allowed the outer walls and roof to remain relatively thin, and by varying the thickness of the single material, it could serve as outer wall, roof, interior wall, stair balustrade and stringer.

The result is a succession of spaces where the difference between ceiling, wall and floor are gone and thus overlap.

The home implements sedum green roofs and black stained ACCOYA (high-technology fast growing, sustainably-sourced wood more durable than teak) planks in a standard width of 15cm.

The exterior is able to embody the traditional aesthetic commonplace to Dutch farms while being wholly environmentally conscious.

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Overhead projection of the residence.

Plan of the home.