new house on the old farm

The buildings on the old farm were barely holding it together, and the farmhouse was deemed uninhabitable. That didn’t stop our enthusiastic client, who saw tons of possibilities and loads of charm. Luckily the client also possesses knowledge of farming and a practical mind, plus a vision of the dream farmhouse.

Seeing that there is plenty to tend to on the property before the place can arise to it’s full potential the budget for the house had a clear limit. Nevertheless we started the process by imagining how we would like the house to be, given fewer limitations, thus circling us down to both the necessities and some principal qualities that came to be regarded indispensable.

Originally we planned the house as an addition to the existing farmhouse, with intentions to refurbish also the old house. Budget limitations and technical issues put an end to that plan, and we considered tearing down the existing house to erect the new one in its place. Finally, for both practical and nostalgic reasons, we decided to keep the original farm house as it is, and moved the new house to a different side of the farmyard.

Given the budget the new house had to be a clean and simple construction. Emphasis was placed on light, a limited material and colour palette, visual axis and a main living room with double height. We started out with plans of a brick house, but found that a wooden façade also played well with the simplicity we needed. Few but large windows, mainly in the shape of glass doors, opens up the view over the wide fields of the farm, connects the rooms inside with the landscape outside, and brings the sunlight into the house.

The ground floor is a complete home, with all functions on one level. The floor above has a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and lounge, and can function both as part of the main unit, as a bedsit for farm help, or turn the house into a two-generations home.

The construction work started January 2019, and hopefully by next winter the old farm will have a brand new house.