School Transformed Home

Repurposing and renovating old buildings is a modern trend that helps save money and breathe new life into an old room. The current house that we are presenting used to be a school, built in 1908 and converted into a modern house by Atelier Vens Vanbelle.

There are several vaulted rooms that stretch between the original windows and a new living room. A central theme was how the large arched windows facing the street could be integrated into the design to keep the rooms private at the same time. The designers decided to create tubular spaces that line up with these glazed surfaces. The privacy of the first floor has been preserved through one-way glass, which still provides the rooms with natural light.

The first of the openings is the main entrance from the street. The second extruded room contains a kitchen, and the area that culminates in the last window houses an office. The deep walls between the carved rooms contain key functional features such as appliances, countertops, and storage space in the kitchen, as well as a desk and shelves in the office.

A space between the entrance area and the kitchen hides a toilet and a staircase that leads to the first floor and a partially submerged basement that offers additional storage space and a laundry room.

The interior features a contrasting palette of raw, untreated materials that give it a tactile and homely feel: brick walls, exposed steel beams, untreated materials, and wood. The decor is modern and quite simple, there are some colorful details like a sunny yellow sofa and you can see cool industrial pieces like chairs and a dining table.