Villa Geldrop at first glance seems like a simple, almost generic house shape; it is however actually a large, witty and very modern family home. The project, the latest residential of Amsterdam-based architects Hofman Dujardin, is located in a suburb outside Eindhoven in the Netherlands and has just been completed.
Set in the Dutch countryside, the house is located at the rear of a large flat site. The volumes are clean and geometric, a composition of dark cladding and glass surfaces that off-set elegantly the surrounding green grass.
On the ground and top - attic - level the layout is straightforward and the aesthetics clean and minimal; living and dining areas, as well as kitchen, are all on the ground floor, while the upper level contains a study area, snuggled under the angled roof. The white interiors and generous openings make the space seem even larger and even brighter, almost a continuation of the countryside.
The house's secret though lies under the main house volume. A few steps down lead the visitor to a pair of underground volumes, running opposite each other and parallel to the site's main pathway, that near-double the house's floor space. Between them, a small lower-level semi-open patio connects the two volumes that consist of the house's bedrooms. Due to this opening, as well as the large glazed openings on the upper levels the whole interior is bathed in light.
Villa Geldrop, a family home for a local businessman, is designed as a fine and powerful balance between the cosy and the contemporary; a house cleverly laid out by Hofmann Dujardin to a maximum spatial effect, working beautifully despite any practical constraints.
By Ellie Stathaki