Studio for Artist Stained Glass / Studio mxmxm

Studio for Artist Stained Glass / Studio mxmxm

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Text description provided by the architects. In 1956, the parents of the current residents built a modern single-storey house on this wooded plot designed by architects Jaqcues Pêtre & Jan Tanghe. The plan is designed on a 1.12 by 1.12 meter grid consisting of an outer shell of black tarred wood walls interspersed with large windows and a cantilevered roof supported by 10 steel columns.

In 2020, current residents asked Studio mxmxm to design a new studio space on this plot to accommodate a stained glass artist practice. In keeping with the existing house, a new detached building was erected on the basis of the same 1.12 by 1.12 meter grid.

The 4 facades are built in a black stained wood frame which also forms the load-bearing structure of the roof. A bay window runs the entire length of the facade, sometimes high up to capture indirect Nordic light, sometimes halfway up to create privacy, and sometimes all day long to create a close visual link with the greenery. The roof is made up of 4 CLT panels which extend over the entire space and tilt towards the center like a “butterfly”. Inside, only the structural lines are tinted black, the infills between them are bare wood or glass, creating a graphic pattern reminiscent of stained glass.

The existing house achieved maximum freedom and efficiency thanks to a structural logic of 10 steel columns and fixed dimensions. The same construction methods were continued in the construction of the new studio space with the latest wood techniques available.

The wooden structure and roof are completely prefabricated and assembled on site. After the concrete foundation slab was poured, it only took 2 days to assemble these prefabricated wooden elements, which significantly shortens the construction time.

This project has been rationally designed according to structural freedom and profitability without losing its playful aspect.