Beguinage Antwerp
Residential heritage
Masterplan for the renovation and restoration of a historical site.
The Beguinage is a special place, an oasis of peace, a city within a city focused on a green core. Its development history is organic, with a combination of larger and smaller buildings. We see it as a precursor to modern collective living. The differences in scale make it possible to create a varied range of housing (for couples, large and small families, intergenerational living and many other forms of communal living).
Collectivity can only succeed if there is sufficient private space where people can withdraw. Because the front gardens can be 'appropriated' by one family or residential group, they can be turned into high-quality private outdoor space. This relieves the pressure on the collective courtyard garden, allowing it to be used optimally as a place of silence for the residents and visitors.
The renovated conversion accommodates a collective residential programme in the form of rooming houses. The extension creates a flowing transition between the two buildings and shapes the entrance.
