Buitenkans
An eco-village surrounded by groves, with lots of greenery on the mostly communal land. Seven houses have been built on free plots. ...
An eco-village surrounded by groves, with lots of greenery on the mostly communal land. Seven houses have been built on free plots. There are also 48 wood-frame units, partly detached, partly placed in small rows, in a cheerful Scandinavian colour palette. The ground floor is plastered, the upper floor finished with colourful tongue-and-groove boards. The houses all have solar boilers, wall heating, excellent insulation and vegetation roofs. Rainwater flows into the central pond, which serves for water storage but is also a pleasure garden for plants and animals. People park at the entrance and keep the rest of the site car-free. The architects found inspiration from Rudolf Steiner, promoter of anthroposophical architecture, and architect Ton Alberts, advocate of oblique and rounded angles and lines, based on shapes in nature. Despite the wide variety of translations of these principles we see in De Buitenkans, it has remained a unity, except for a single detached villa whose form and colour clash. In 2013, a community centre was added with a surprising crow's-nest-like extension to the front façade.
