ARCHELLO YOUR CONNECTION WITH ARCHITECTURE

Remarkable and controversial combination of existing and new construction on the Rietveld, a small canal in Delft. Both individual and institutionalized opponents objected vehemently to the construction, but the Building Inspectorate and the monument preservation committees were full of praise.
The project combines the complete dismantling and reconstruction of a 16th-century building with modern new construction on an adjoining seven-metre-wide parcel where there was a gap in the historical street front. The existing and new construction jointly generate a stimulating field of tension and form the living and working area of a married couple with their own graphic design firm. The monument and new construction are linked by means of a central open staircase and a connecting zone made entirely of hard glass, which also functions as the entrance. The configuration is organized horizontally: the business functions are located at ground level, the residential functions are on the first and second floor.
A quest was undertaken to realize as large a contrast as possible in the use of materials. After dismantling, the monument was rebuilt with its own authentic materials, while the new construction was largely implemented in steel and glass. As a result of the careful attunement of scale, dimension, rhythm and finishing, the new construction fits in well with the tranquil and pleasant ambience of the historical inner city. For example, the steel screen partitions of the new roof garden connect elegantly to the broad wooden cornice of the old building. The line of the wooden lintel half-way up the old building is continued on in the steel box beam of the new premises. The brick striped pattern of the old building extends onward in the horizontal slats in front of the glass façade of the new construction, which serve as a privacy screen, sunblinds, and burglar prevention.