Design principles

The architectural design of the villa consists of several interlocking volumes with closed facade surfaces that give the large villa a distinguished and monumental appearance. This was precisely the intention. These aesthetic surfaces were inspired by Kolumba Museum in Cologne. Unique long format bricks were produced especially for the museum, allowing for a thin interplay of lines in the facade. In this look, designer and client found each other. It was to be a built sculpture.

Because of the plasticity of the design, it was important to choose a light facade color. 'We were looking for a color that would ensure that the image of interlocking volumes is reinforced by the shadows between them. It is important that one mass can cast a shadow on the other, so you get more depth through plastic effects. That dark shadow emerges best on a light facing brick,” Feron said.

Second premise was to connect the design to the place where the villa would be built. For the local connection, inspiration was drawn from the Limburg landscape. Nearby is the highest plateau in the Netherlands, completely eroded by streams and rivers into the characteristic hill country; here you can find the unique Kunrader stone. Titled after the South Limburg village where it was much mined. It is a kind of marl or limestone but rock hard (part of the vault ribs of the church of Saint Servatius in Maastricht is made of it). The color varies from light to dark beige, white-yellow, with gray and dark shades. The new material had to be a translation of this beautiful local Kunrader stone.

Photo: MBI presents Mark Feron (ARCHITECTENZAAK) with the GeoStylistix Limestone Yellow 'award', as a memento of this special project and fine cooperation. The unique color was custom produced by MBI in close cooperation with the architect.

Choice of GeoStylistix facing bricks

The client finally found a facing brick that did allow for customization. An elongated, slender facing brick with a natural stone look: GeoStylistix from MBI. This facing brick fitted in perfectly with the design in terms of its elongation, dimensional stability and look. Those involved quickly agreed. Not least by visiting several references with this stone. Only there was the need for a piece of customization for the light color that had to resemble Kunrader stone. The fact that it could be custom-made was felt to be very special. 'Every architect prefers to work with their own stamp. The freedom to be able to influence the recipe of the final color with a hand of sand from the quarry is phenomenal,' says Mark.

Limestone Yellow

'It's very brave of MBI that they took the adventure and made sample panels until the color was perfect.' For this piece of custom work, a consultant from MBI had about 20 samples made to arrive at that perfect color. This one was eventually, quite appropriately, christened “Limestone Yellow. According to Mark, custom GeoStylistix fits perfectly with the ultimate designers philosophy: 'The material is modern, almost abstract, but the color makes it very recognizable and has a local quality. This material lends itself to making a connection with the users and the environment. There was also an immediate click with local residents.'

Limestone yellow as a project color

ARCHITECTENZAAK is very proud of the result and knows how to convince more people and parties of its own color. It now carries the hallmark: 'Color Tailored By ARCHITECTENZAAK'. A new project is in the pipeline. The municipality of Beek is going to build a Broad Social Facility in which the many different users will have a unifying factor thanks to a uniform facade material. Not coincidentally, also in the color Limestone Yellow. Mark Feron: 'There were several rounds of cuts during which all the materials were critically examined. But the facade brick and the color were always advocated by the municipality as necessary and were never up for discussion. That is a great compliment'.