New Riverbank in Alde-Boarn

Thanks to our research into the characteristics of the village of Aldeboarn a text was composed listing several rules. These rules formed the basis for a document, which this new building, consisting of 20 apartments and 9 houses, has to conform to. This project is to be built on a location where currently an old factory can be found, along the river Boarn.

The height of the building is not seen as independent from the whole, and this is the way it should be in a village. The project has been split into parts, each part, and the whole, being inspected to try and blend the building into it’s surroundings. The result is a whole with individual influences to be added, in collaboration with the architect.

A contemporary aspect has to be clear, but the building has to build on the history of the village, without being a return to this history. The diversity in the individual homes is a direct reference to how Aldeboarn came to be. The influence of time is visible in the village through the different building-styles that together form the face of Aldeboarn. Diversity creates uniformity by creating a whole out of different small elements. It is important to build on this. The homes have to be built and detailed in a way that is contemporary, and that allows the home to be adapted to the wishes of the individual, but simultaneously incorporates the communality of the village and provides a native feeling.

The relation of the individual home with the public area is created through the alternation of materials, both in the public areas and in the facades of the buildings. The communal area is being designed by the architect, such that communal gardens are alternated with private gardens. This is a way to enforce the village landscape and to connect homes to gardens and to the communal open air areas.

Village alleys will divide the walking-areas in strategically chosen locations, so as to create a feeling of openness and to facilitate the access to the village. It is also a reflection of the characteristics of Aldeboarn.

The homes and the apartment complex are to be created in a way that does justice to the village. This entails that materials common elsewhere in Aldeboarn will be used for the roofs, facades, windows and extensions. These materials are to be applied in their raw, natural state. Weathering will have a positive effect on the material, to allow a better blending in of the buildings over time. The materials are only to be attached in the ways stipulated by the architect.

Each home is based on a basic frame, but is given an individual character through small modifications made by the architect. In this way, the place gets a sense of individuality and encourages individual expression, but in a coordinated manner. Being open for individual modifications allows for unforeseen uses. By adapting the rules for this, surprises are avoided, which avoids these modification ruining the overall image.

The relation of the interior of the home with the exterior context has to be intensified to respond to the age-old relationship of the village with it’s surrounding landscape. The result is a smooth transition from the interior, to the garden, to the public areas.