Architect Karin Matz gives new life to what used to be the hay storage of a traditional house located on the small island of Fohr in the north sea. Respecting and cherishing local traditions, she gives a fresh, modern look to the interior of a house built in red bricks, topped with a thatched roof. Such houses really appeal to me, always reminding me of visits to the British countryside and places like Cambridge and Oxford. Do you like them, too?
After demolishing all walls except the ones surrounding the bathroom, Karin adds a new volume, a wooden structure, which in fact becomes the central wall going through and unifying the area. She grabs the chance to keep the island’s tradition alive, by covering its surface with as many as 3200 ceramic tiles! In the past, the more tiles the houses of the captains of the village had, the richer the family. This was the means of expressing wealth, as ceramics and tiles from Asia were brought back from their journeys.
All identical tiles are shiny white, reflecting and thus multiplying light and feature a simple pattern given by blue colored cement, evident through the hand made holes. Blue is the color of the 500 meters of polypropylene thread used to frame the staircase, creating a transparent threshold, allowing again for light to travel in between the house’s living areas. Only the bedrooms are kept rather small and dark, reminding of boxes, encouraging a feeling of nesting.
Putting all elements together and taking a look back at what the architect and her team had created, they realized that in fact they created what reminds of a stranded ship. A very nice ship indeed.
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