There is a saying in Belgium that explains the ardent affection for this wonderful building material: "Belgians are born with a brick in their stomach." Indeed, if you look at the development of cities, and at different times, you can see that it is predominantly brick. Moreover, the brick is not plastered, but exposed and demonstrates the truly natural beauty of this artificial stone.
If earlier clinker bricks of red, natural clay tone prevailed, now architects are increasingly choosing a palette that is unusual for traditional bricks: white, black, gray, dark brown and sand. This technique helps to stay within the framework of tradition, not to fall out of the urban planning context, to enjoy working with this "living", sculptural material and at the same time to create sharp, ultra-modern architectural images.
Carol Bumps' designs are distinguished by simplicity and rationality. But the strict geometry and laconicism of the volume are more than compensated by the comfort and coziness of the organization of the internal space.
The architect did not deviate from this clear and uncompromising line in the project of a low-rise residential complex for the center of Antwerp. On a closed and surprisingly calm plot of land, he created a modern three-storey belt building, which added a modern touch to the image of ancient Antwerp and, at the same time, emphasized the measured rhythm of the city center. It would seem that the decorativeness of the facades in this place would be natural, but instead of bay windows, turrets or villas decorated with columns, the eye falls on the radiant architecture of white clinker in the style of new constructivism.
The elongated ridge, formed by a single slope roof for the entire row, integrates eight separate, as if carved out of snow, residential and office blocks, in one of which, by the way, Carol Bamps himself lives and works with his family. There are six apartments on the ground floor. And on the second level, separated by an attached narrow staircase, there are two attic apartments.
The north-facing facade towards the private road and adjacent buildings is relatively closed - only narrow, horizontally elongated window openings stand out on it. All entrance doors, as well as the glazing of the architect's office, are made of turquoise frosted glass, which helps to reduce the visibility of private properties.
The pitched roof that rises at an angle from the gutter is not visible from below, so the building looks low. The other façade facing the garden is reminiscent of the architect Le Corbusier thanks to its openness and emphatically modern design with horizontal window openings framed in black.
Due to the rising "high wall" on the ridge and the second floor, which occupies one and a half floors, the building seems to be larger and higher than from the side facing the street. The rhythmic alternation of building pieces allows for an emphasis on perspective and provides interesting views. The exploited flat roof of the third floor is used as a balcony.
In order to gain additional space for the living room on the first floor and premises on the second, the lower part of the building was expanded due to the volumes protruding into the garden. At the ends of a number of houses, the architect added, in addition to the block that was pushed forward, a small one-story volume clad in black clinker.
The large black details contrast with the rest of the white clinker facades, which further emphasizes the dynamics of the stepped volume construction. The roof surface of the one-story extension is also used as a balcony.
The structure of the outer walls consists of two rows of bricks with facing masonry and thermal insulation located inside. For the cladding, a smooth white mother-of-pearl clinker in the format 220x105x52 mm was used. For the author of the project, no less important than the design of the building was the quality of the building material used and the conditions for its operation. The architect was not afraid to use snow-white clinker, because made of high-quality clay, it absorbs less than 2% of water, and the dust settling on the walls is simply washed away by the rain: “For me in the project it was especially valuable. Otherwise, the gray coating would have prevented the appearance of the shining whiteness of the architecture. " And for dark extensions, in contrast to the white surfaces, a smooth black ceramic clinker was used with a shade: "the darkest stone that I have found on sale" - the author emphasized.
Collections of bricks with color schemes for the project: facing bricks Hagel Wit, facing bricks Onyx Zwart.
Information provided by the company "Kirill"
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