Verbiest House

Programme

Housing, ceramist workshop, vegetable greenhouse

Frugal in its approach and choice of materials, yet innovative in the solutions it presents, this project aims to transform a large warehouse (1000 m2) into a single-family house, a productive garden and a shared art studio in Molenbeek, Brussels. The architects’ choice of (1) radically limiting demolition work, (2) maintaining the existing structures and (3) reusing as much of the existing materials and components as possible in order to cut down on waste and retain a sense of place, all make the project an innovative one in terms of its "circular" approach to conversion. To reduce energy waste, the radical limitation of heated spaces and their arrangement to suit seasonal use and proximity to already heated areas allow the architects to be creative and smart even in terms of environmental and energy strategy. The flexibility of the proposed solutions and the modesty of the programme in comparison with the scale of the existing building are at the heart of the architectural quality of the project, which, while making the most of a building from the past, nevertheless projects into the future. Within and among these spaces, the project seems not to shrink from the urban and environmental transition but, rather, to draw on it.

Martina Barcelloni Corte