Villa Rue
Natural and biogenic materials are the key to this sustainable home. An interpretation of the modern barn. A home is not just a room or a place. - It’s a feeling.
Name
Villa Rue
Client
Private
Status
Schematic design
Time span
2024-
Location
Vejle
Size
350 m2
Type
Residential
Budget
N/A
Partner in charge:
Thomas Bossel
PAX Team:
Mathias Kruse Jakobsen
Anders Gottfred
Architecture:
PAX Architects
Landscape:
PAX Architects
Visualizations:
PAX architects
When we first met the client and saw their place, they were convinced that they wanted to demolish all the old buildings and build a new house that could accommodate all their dreams for functions and needs. In addition, they wanted to build a new garage, a new shed and a multi-purpose space. At the same time, it was important to the client that the project was forward-looking in relation to the use of materials and sustainability in general.
We therefore suggested to preserve as much as possible of the old fine barn buildings and transform them into a garage, office, shed and multi-purpose space - rather than demolishing them.
The out-of-date main house is gently broken down, and its materials are reused for paving around the new house and in the courtyard. A mixture of crushed concrete and brick will create a new aesthetic that can only be produced through a careful approach to sustainability and recycling.
Basically, we would rather transform than demolish. And rather than building a big new house, we would rather build a well-thought-out smaller house that uses passive measures rather than a lot of high-tech add-ons.
Upon arrival to the country house, you are greeted by the fine old trees and led further into the courtyard, where a group of new cherry trees accentuate the entrance of the house. The retaining wall of boulders creates a transition between the two natural plateaus found on the site. The boulders are found on adjecent fields.
Concept/ passive solar heating
Summer: The long overhang to the south ensures that the high summer sun does not enter the house and thus does not overheat the home. The bedrooms are oriented to the north so they are in the shade. In this way, unnecessary energy is not used to cool down the home.
Winter: The low winter sun passes the overhang and comes far into the house. This contributes positively to the home’s comfort, as the sunrays will heat the floor and be stored in the concrete, which is released during the day - also when darkness falls.
The combination of old and new form an embracing welcoming architecture where past and present creates intimate outdoor spaces where life can unfold itself.
The old garage is being transformed into a workshop and bicycle shed.
The building will have a new roof, and the green gates will be redone. To the east, a large window is inserted, so that you can look out at the fields when you are sitting on your bicycle.
A gentle renovation of the walls and floor, as well as a new roof, transforms the old garage into a completely new workshop for the cycling enthusiast. A large sliding door to the west opens up to the courtyard.
On the south facing facade, the large overhang creates a covered outdoor space with a magnificent view of the fields. A lovely spot to relax when the dew falls on summer evenings, or to go outside and enjoy the sun in the Spring. The facades are clad in untreated wood and is devided in a top and a base.
Vision sketch
Three old buildings are transformed and the new simply shaped modern barn are situated thus is corelates to the transformed barns thus the old courtyard space is defined by the buildings.
The large pitched roof is the main architectural element of the project. Framing is used as architectural motif to enhance the qualities of the surroundings. Selected views are cultivated architecturally and create special rooms, niches and nooks for living, which together outline the expression of the house - robust and precise rather than flexible and fluttering.
The old transformed barn opens up towards the beautiful fields, where the morning sun is rising.
We suggest an insulated “box” covered with plywood on the walls and ceilings, as well as a built-up floor, covered with PU.
Under the overhang facing south there is both the entrance to the house and a covered outdoor space. From this spot, in addition to looking through the whole house, there is also a view of the rolling landscape to the south. The kitchen is in open connection with the dining area which can be opened all the way to the outdoors. The large sliding door can be open even when the summer rain is falling.
The west end of the country house opens up into the lush orchard full of old crooked apple trees through which the evening sun is filtered in the most beautiful way. From this spot there is a stunning view to the courtyard covered with crushed recycled tiles from the old buildings. A great part of the DNA of this project lies in the roof, both for old and new in which we have inscriped the new barn house.
The combination of old and new form an embracing welcoming architecture where past and present creates intimate outdoor spaces where life can unfold itself.
The house opens up from north to south - from the tall trees in the backyard through the kitchen and dining area and all the way to the covered terrace and to the courtyard where the view is articulated by the beautiful fields. As well as the large overhang to the south protects against overheating, the skylight ensures that daylight flows into the tall space, especially above the dining area and all the way into the kitchen, where the ceiling is lowered to create a spatial transition between living room and kitchen. Furthermore, the kitchen can be screened off with a large sliding door.
A hidden cozy nook with access to the living room is revealed in the “attic”.
The inner surfaces are covered with Søuld and the floor covered with a sisal carpet. From this intimate space, through a shutter, there is a spectacular view to the beautiful hilly landscape.
In all of our housing projects we search for a homely atmosphere, no matter what scale we are working with - this project is no exception. To the east, the landscape motif, with the undulating fields, is framed by the large window section in which a piece of furniture is integrated. At the far end of the room, the ceiling height is lowered and forms an intimate niche.
The poetry originates in the meeting between new and old - past and present - as the project here demonstrates in its material palette and the completely unique and beautiful spaces that arise between the old sheds and the new modern barn.