nico van der meulen: house ber

‘house ber’ by nico van der meulen, midrand, south africa image © barend roberts all images courtesy of nico van der meulen

south african firm nico van der meulen has recently completed ‘house ber’ in midrand, south africa as a response to the client’s need for an open plan, airy spaces and a large study. the center of the house is based around a rectangular mass housing the public functions: living rooms, dining room and kitchen flanked by a koi pond and swimming pool. protruding steel structures on the second floor frame the private areas with playful steel bars drawing lines between the girders, while steel grates on the floor help to block out the sun on the storey below. a series of stone and concrete walls and marble tile floors add an array of textures in a semi-open volume that connects to the exterior pools and gardens.

perspective image © barend roberts

approach to entry image © barend roberts

view from garden image © barend roberts

exterior koi ponds images © victoria pilcher

retractable glass doors open the indoor to the outdoor pond image © victoria pilcher

image © barend roberts

exterior terraces shade below image © barend roberts

exterior pools images © david ross

open central living room image © victoria pilcher

main interior space with koi pond image © david ross

stone steps connect to kitchen and dining room image © barend roberts

dining room image © barend roberts

image © barend roberts

stone wall and fire place image © barend roberts

interior (left) image © victoria pilcher (right) image © david ross, barend roberts, victoria pilcher

open-plan spaces create a singular room around a pond image © victoria pilcher

bedroom image © barend roberts

bathroom image © barend roberts

floor plan / level 0

floor plan / level 1