location
The plot is in an exceptional location on a widened piece of land at the end of De Borcht. This section of road only serves local traffic going to the small number of detached houses situated along this road. On the eastern side – between the plot and the Amstel – lies the Amstelpark. From the plot, the Riekermolen windmill on the Amstel can clearly be seen in its abundantly green setting.

 

design
The house is situated on the outermost edge of a quiet residential area, more or less parallel to the Europaboulevard. The district has been built on the basis of a predominantly orthogonal system. The small number of residential houses on the outermost eastern side which includes De Borcht 3 follow the orthogonal system in terms of the orientation of the building volumes but at the same time also follow the form of the nearby waterways in terms of their positioning. Consequently, the façades and building volumes of the residential houses themselves are not in line with each other. The volumes of the houses are staggered in relation to each other. This reinforces the autonomous character of these houses and emphasises the looser layout of this part of the district.

It was decided that the design of the new house should respect the district’s orthogonal system. The construction of the building is in the form of a T. On one side of the leg of the ‘T’ is the main entrance to the villa and the access to the basement garage while the garden is on the other side. On the garden side, more flowing transitions between inside and outside have been created using balconies and canopies, and large expanses of glass have given the façades an open character. The façades on the main access side have a more closed character.

The house has 3 floors. The lower floor – the basement – houses supporting functions such as the garage, cinema, nanny accommodation, guest room, technical rooms and storage facilities. The functions that require daylight such as the nanny accommodation and guest room are connected to a sunken part of the garden. The living area which includes the lounges, kitchen and entrance hall is situated on the middle floor. The bedrooms are on the top floor.