...
Dutch practice Personal Architecture has transformed part of Rotterdam's iconic Cube Houses into a design-led home for young convicts in their final stages of rehabilitation
Photography: René de Wit
The Super Cube by Personal Architecture
The Super Cube by Personal Architecture
The housing complex was originally designed by Dutch architect Piet Blom in the 1970s (and completed in 1984)
Aptly dubbed the Super Cube, Personal Architecture's newly redesigned space takes over one of the larger cubic constellations on site, containing residential units on the intermediate levels and facilities on the top
Instead of dividing the common amenities into separate rooms, the architects have combined them into an open-plan living area on the fourth floor that includes the kitchen, computer station and dining room on a central island
The central cooking unit
The fourth storey of the building benefits from a ceiling height of over 11 metres. The rafters are also fully glazed, allowing an abundance of natural light to pour into the cube
The Super Cube was restructured into a single design scheme spanning 1200 sq m, with careful respectful to the original interior
At the heart of the Super Cube is an open shaft that connects all the floors visually
Says Personal Architecture: ‘The void highlights the transparency and coherence of the building and adds a great deal of sunlight from the top to the levels underneath’
The central shaft also plays a part in the building’s thermal regulation by creating a ‘chimney effect’, which allows air to circulate and push warmth upwards
The ground floor includes a reception, shop and archive
The Super Cube's loft-like layout increases the transparency and readability of the building, helping to shed surplus light onto the lower floors