House Muziekbos

This compact residence has been carefully designed to make the most of the sloping, wooded site of the Muziekbos. Large windows blur the boundary between indoors and outdoors, while natural materials reinforce the character of the surrounding forest.

The design is based on two key principles: minimising the visual impact of the house from the street while maximising openness towards the woodland. This is achieved by integrating the new building into the natural slope of the site, allowing the topography to shape both its appearance and spatial experience.

Through carefully considered architectural proportions, the house presents itself from the street as a modest single-storey volume with a pitched roof. Towards the forest, however, it unfolds into three levels with generous windows and outdoor living spaces on two different levels, offering a variety of perspectives and experiences of the unique woodland setting.

The house is organised across three storeys. A partially embedded lower level forms a robust plinth, supporting the main living floor above, while the upper floor accommodates the bedrooms beneath the pitched roof. The lower level provides access to the garage and opens onto the forest and a lower terrace, around which the secondary living spaces are arranged.

The ground floor contains the entrance and the primary living areas. Expansive floor-to-ceiling windows and a covered terrace create a strong connection with the surrounding woodland, allowing the forest to be experienced from an elevated position. Two external staircases along the side façades connect this level to the lower terrace and garden.

The upper floor is positioned beneath a pitched roof. Along the street façade, the roof tiles extend beyond the roof plane to partially cover the façade, reducing the visual scale of the building and reinforcing its discreet presence within the streetscape. The anthracite roof covering is complemented by natural stone detailing, referencing the quarrying history of the Muziekberg, where remnants of historic quarries can still be found throughout the landscape.

This historically inspired material is thoughtfully combined with a contemporary dark grey facing brick and carefully integrated timber detailing, creating a harmonious dialogue between the site’s cultural heritage and its rich forest environment.