Kristal is a residential building with approximately 200 apartments for the elderly and is located in the Vinex district of Nesselande. The building's ground floor houses various facilities, including a health center, a community center and a library. Due to changes in the functions housed in the ground floor, there is a need to think about its redevelopment.

Commissioned by SOR, MATH has conducted an analysis of the location and the building. Based on the developed vision, a number of scenarios have been investigated for the future transformation.

This forest cabin is located in a clearing on the outskirts of Vierhouten in the Veluwe. Because the house replaced an existing vacation home, restrictions were placed on the maximum allowable floor area.
The rooms are arranged around a glass-enclosed patio, making the house feel exceptionally spacious despite its limited floor area. At the same time, this creates a buffer between the sleeping and living areas. Large sliding louvered screens can be used to create a more intimate atmosphere in the living room, the patio, or the bedrooms. When no one is home, these screens protect the patio from overly curious wild boars.
The building is constructed using a wood-frame structure with open siding. Thanks to its robust detailing and the roof finish featuring natural slate laid in a random pattern, the building blends seamlessly into its surroundings.
The design was developed in close collaboration with the clients and was completed in the summer of 2013. Since then, the house has been called “De Boshut.” It is very popular as a vacation home.

Forest House, Vierhouten

This residential complex is situated on a former industrial site in the middle of the village of Handel in North Brabant, Netherlands. The 12 rental apartments are built in two layers over a parking garage. Resolving the parking under the building gave us the opportunity to arrange the surrounding terrain as a communal garden.
The spacious 2 and 3 room apartments all have a living room with a south-facing balcony. The staggering of the partly indoor balconies provides a pleasant undulation to the facade. On account of the municipal restrictions regarding height, a curved roof was chosen. To match the village architecture, a coarse red brick has been used with dark, inset joints. The roof is made of metal and is enclosed by spacious gutters.
The building is centrally heated with a heat pump. The closed system uses a heat roof of 100 m2 and seven sources located at a depth of 100 meters. Geothermal energy provides heat, cooling and hot water in the homes. The heat exchanger in the roof keeps the system in balance. All houses have their own distribution unit with meters. Rainwater is purified and collected by means of a sedimentation facility in the garden. Together with the naturally ventilated parking basement, these are aspects that make the building particularly sustainable.
This project was developed, designed and executed by MATH architects BV in one hand.