Rieteiland Living Room

living and working in IJburg

living and working in IJburg

On the Kleine Rieteiland (‘little island of reeds’), one of the islands that form the Amsterdam suburb of IJburg, several terraces of relatively wide houses have been reserved for individuals to build their own patio-houses. For a family with young children and parents working from home, we designed a timber house offering generous, simple and flexible spaces, with a combination of large openings and areas of privacy. 

location: Kleine Rieteiland, IJburg, Amsterdam
design: 2007-2008
realisation: 2008-2009
client: MvdS family
structural engineer: Pieters Bouwtechniek Utrecht, Jaap Dijks
contractor: Jasper Kerkhofs, Christian Dörschug
photography: Jeroen vd Spek
Rieteiland Situation
Rieteiland Door 2
Rieteiland Window
Rieteiland Model 2
Rieteiland Model 1
Rieteiland Model 3
model studies

The house has been constructed as a timber structure consisting of solid timber walls and roof and a beam structure for the first floor. This structure has been painted white, subtly leaving the texture of the timber visible. The timber elements used in the interior remain exposed, adding colour and expression to the rooms.

1 garden
2 living room
3 kitchen
4 storage 
5 studio
6 sleeping room
7 bathroom
8 roof terrace

Rieteiland Floorplan 0
Rieteiland Floorplan 1

The ground floor is fully occupied by the large living and working area opened up to the private waterside at the back of the plot. The generous kitchen and dining area are oriented toward the patio and the street. The upper floor is a long, narrow volume on the northern side, occupying about half of the surface of the ground floor. The other half has been furnished as an enclosed patio on the roof, which is sunny and private. The bedrooms face south and have direct access to the outside.

Rieteiland Living Room 2
Rieteiland Kitchen 3
Rieteiland Corridor
Rieteiland Entrance Open
Rieteiland Dining Room

The house has been built as a simple structure of solid timber walls. The floors are made of expressive, narrow timber beams with a thin timber deck on top. This visually dominant structure determines the character of the house. Its spatial impact has been enhanced by several skylights.

Rieteiland Façade Closed