[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css_animation=”top-to-bottom”]Bringing an old house back to life is often a challenge but from the obstacles can emerge unusual and interesting ideas. Through series of design interventions the architects from LADAA and JKA (Jérémie Koempgen Architecture) achieve a fine union between old and new with their project in Craon, France.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
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An old farm which hasn’t been in use for 40 years is now transformed into a residence. Two separate buildings has been joined in one as the name of the project suggests (“Vivre
Sous Un Toit” – fr., “living under one roof” ). The wooden extension is a nice complement to the stone structures and the small passage between the two parts is providing a glimpse of the inner garden. Well designed, this part of the house is discrete but welcoming and provides weather protection from rain and wind.
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The kitchen is in very close contact with the outside environment as the openings for doors and windows are large and the long visual axis provides view to different parts of the garden. The most interesting here, and in the house as a whole, is the handling of contemporary materials and details like the kitchen plot or the faucet in relation with more traditional materials like wood and stone. The elegant metal stair, for example, is combined with the preserved beams, the old masonry and the fireplace but in a way that doesn’t make the contrast too obvious. Instead, the atmosphere is light and soft.
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An especially hard task is to decide which elements to keep and which to remove or hide. Of course the stability is most important but also is to introduce a clever design for co-existance of old and added elements. Old farm houses can sometimes feel cold and dark so here this is avoided as the stone is shown mostly in the exterior while the interior is dominated by clean white walls which bring to foreground old elements with a significant character.
