FORM / STUDIO

10 / 12Brussels, BelgiumResidential2023

Townhouse 03

5.2 metres wide. The narrowest plot we have built on, and the most vertical house.

A narrow corridor between dark timber walls leading to a sheer curtain and a chair.

An infill house on a plot too narrow for a corridor and a room side by side. The stair and a slot of daylight take the middle of the plan, and every floor is arranged around them.

Location
Brussels, Belgium
Year
2023
Project type
Residential
Status
Completed
Surface area
208 m²
Scope
New infill house, interiors
Structure
Bureau T. (fictional)

Fictional project. Photographs are illustrative stock and do not show a building by FORM Studio.

D01Street elevationElevationIllustrative drawing
Street elevation: illustrative elevationIllustrative elevation in brick, about 5.2 metres wide.05 m

Plan

On a 5.2-metre plot, a corridor and a room cannot both be comfortable. So the corridor goes. The rooms run the full width of the house, and movement happens between them through a central stair lit from above. On each landing, you step off the stair and straight into a room.

This puts a lot of pressure on the stair. It is the most considered element in the house, and also the most-used piece of furniture.

A stair with oak treads and a dark steel balustrade seen from below.
Fig. 1 Central stair, first flight. Oak treads on dark steel.
D03Section A–ASectionIllustrative drawing
Section A–A: illustrative sectionIllustrative section cut through the building, 11.5 metres to the highest point.EntranceBedroomBedroomStudioKitchen, diningLivingBedroom+0.00+3.20+6.20+9.00+11.5005 m
A white room with an oak floor, a dark chair and a framed picture.
Fig. 2 First-floor room, facing the street.
A white-panelled room with a parquet floor, a small rug and an armchair.
Fig. 3 Rear room, with a full-height shutter folded back.
D02Ground floorPlanIllustrative drawing
Ground floor: illustrative floor planIllustrative plan of about 5.20 by 15.60 metres containing Entrance, Stair, Kitchen, Dining. The numbered key beside the drawing lists each room.Patio12342.203.005.204.004.204.403.00AAN05 m
  1. 1Entrance8.1 m²
  2. 2Stair11.2 m²
  3. 3Kitchen20.7 m²
  4. 4Dining21.7 m²
A pale plastered stair rising through a square opening, in soft light.
Fig. 4 Top flight, lined in lime plaster.

Material schedule

  1. M01

    Dark-stained oak

    Corridor walls, stair treads

    Stained before fitting, oiled after. It gives the middle of the house its low, enclosed feel.

  2. M02

    Blackened steel

    Stair stringers, balustrades

    Waxed, not painted, so it marks slowly around the handrail.

  3. M03

    Lime plaster

    Upper rooms

    Painted only on the top floor, where the light is direct enough to need softening.