CHANGE.NL’s holiday home in france reveals a sloping annex with panoramic views

CHANGE.NL completes holiday home in brittany, france

A few years ago, Dutch architectural firm CHANGE.NL was approached by a client to design a holiday home on the south coast of Brittany, France. The wood-clad structure emerges amid a sloping site where a group of monumental trees take over its middle part. Presented with these conditions, and given how construction is allowed only in these two places, the architects sought to design a modest main residence with an annex for the spacious site.

embracing the site’s sloping topography

The holiday home by CHANGE.NL (see more here) introduces a long horizontal line that connects the main residence and annex and responds to the vastness and height difference of its surroundings. Lead architects Iemke Bakker and Artsje Hylkemasloping saw the sloping site as an opportunity; with sufficient height available, the team has built the annex in two layers, allowing the footprint to remain compact and both volumes to ‘land’ into the landscape. 

chestnut wood-clad house alluding to fishing huts

The characteristic monumental trees form an iconic part of both the holiday home and the landscape. The facade openings of the smaller living spaces frame a view of the coastal landscape. Meanwhile, the living room and kitchen of the main residence offer a panoramic sea view through the wide glass. For the cladding, CHANGE.NL has chosen ‘châtaignier’, or chestnut wood, which is traditionally used to build the characteristic fishing huts along the Breton coast.

project info:

name: Holiday Home 

location: Brittany, France

architecture studio: CHANGE.NL

lead architect: Iemke Bakker and Artsje Hylkema

site supervision: Magaye N’DIAYE / Domos studio

contractor: Guérin Brémaud 

structural engineer: BREED Integrated Design

photographer: Jorrit ‘t Hoen