The bureaucratic setting of a former customs house is not the first place you would look for innovation and fresh thinking, but architecture practice DIIIP is not known for sticking to conventions. It has created a truly extraordinary structure wrapped in shimmering aluminium. Set back slightly from the original building’s exterior, the two-storey addition is flanked by two terraces, with another on its roof.
‘For us, less is often more, and timelessness is more consistent than any trend,’ says Jochen Reetz, the studio’s founder. Together with homeowners Edwin and Melissa, he masterminded a total renovation, using sustainable materials that would age well and could be easily repaired. Plenty of storage and flexibility were also essential elements, intended to allow room for the couple and their young family to grow.
Jochen chose to place the bedrooms and bathrooms on the entrance floor, with the living and dining areas, kitchen and home office flowing into each other on the upper level. Across these spaces and roof terrace above, a simple, restrained material palette of timber, clay plaster and natural rubber creates cohesion.
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All the custom joinery – cupboards, benches, bunks and more – was made by a carpenter using silver fir, a locally sourced timber. The knot-free grain of the wood creates a feeling of calm spaciousness, even in the rather narrow entrance hallway.
The calm is purposefully broken, however, by the glowing, glossy orange staircase. A deliberate contrast to the otherwise natural tones of the interior, it becomes this home’s vivid central core. Echoes of the neon hue are playfully placed around the house, on everything from taps to candleholders.
With unexpected transitions and lightwells, this is a house that is full of surprises, but the best ‘wow’ moment of all is awaiting anyone who climbs the stairs to the rooftop terrace. Ascend and you are rewarded with a breathtaking view of the river, with its passing ships, and the lush green meadows that stretch out from the opposite bank. diiip.net
