House IJburg
The most wonderful in a room is the light that comes through the window of the room. The sun never knew how great it was before a room was built – Louis Khan
This beautiful quote is mentioned on Rocha Tombal‘s website, the architects of this amazing House IJburg, located in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Ana Rocha and Michel Tombal are masters of light, which is something that any house in the rainy Netherlands is craving for, most of the year.
Paradoxical to the closed façade (which I really love, such a bold statement!), the house really embraces natural light.
Through the careful placement of windows and walls, each floor and room has its own light intensity: very light on the ground floor, slightly darker on the first and second floor, and again bathing in light on the top floor.
Almost a shame to add furniture!
- 10.03.2010 .
- Maarten P. Kappert .
- Tags .
- Category:
- Architecture & Interior design
- Object:
- House
- Designer:
- Ana Rocha + Michel Tombal
- Agency:
- Rocha Tombal
- Location:
- Amsterdam
- Share .
- 12 comments
…too minimal.
this is not minimal: it’s empty!
Yep, still empty.
it’s amazing. i wonder what the design process was like. it always amazes me when people craft something like this, it’s truly inspirational.
not minimal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Boring
Well argumented Chris!
In one of the most beautiful Brian Eno’s Oblique Stategies he says: “enhances a virgin space with a frame.” This is what I mean as the true essence of minimalism. The light use in this creates the perfect “boundary conditions” to delineate a “beautiful even if empty” space, “alive even if not yet lived”. Moreover an architecture is “a frame of life situations” and this is a frame where I would like to live. Very minimal for me…
Wow David, thanks for sharing those great quotes! I think Brian Eno says it well.
FANTASTIC
still not convinced!!!……Perhaps its not minimal for me….not a exciting piece of architecture……….” Brian Eno ” quotes are nice!…….but not the above piece of architecture…they are just pretentious spaces that could not claim any meaning with light!
” a frame of life situations ” I would never quote for these spaces! Perhaps Adjaye Ed’s shed or Liz Diller’s “cantilever media tech” for me are nice examples
like the look of the outer front .. very sculptural chimney though..
i would add some wellchosen furniture and surely live in it !!
love this blog !!
it’s not really my type with the high ceiling and narrow corridor, but i like the stairs, and the windows. Maybe it’s just that i’m not in this minimal-world, but couldn’t you add some coulour to the walls? Ok, furniture could change it, but still it may makes the whole house a little boring.
:p