Space&Matter nestles timber housing blocks into a Dutch woodland
A series of "forest rooms" draws pockets of the surrounding woodland into Common Woods, a housing development in Amersfoort, the Netherlands, by Dutch studio Space&Matter.
Located at the edge of the historic Nimmerdor forest, the "nature-inclusive neighbourhood" provides 56 homes across 15 rectilinear blocks, ranging from apartments to semi-detached houses and independent villas.
Space&Matter wanted to give residents of Common Woods the feeling of "living in a forest", which informed an irregular cluster of blocks united by winding paths and open gardens.
"The masterplan was not based on a rigid grid but is organised as a cluster of buildings set within generous open spaces," the studio's art director, Bas van Bentum told Dezeen.
"Invisible plot boundaries allow the forest to flow deep into the plan, forming 'boskamers' - intimate forest rooms around the buildings," he continued.
"The central square forms the heart of the neighbourhood – a shared space where residents meet, engage in everyday communal life and grow herbs in the greenhouse."
Constructed primarily from cross laminated timber (CLT), each block was based on a modular design that created what the studio calls a "family of buildings" that appear unified but distinct.
Where the development faces a nearby road these blocks have a more formal, stepped rhythm, while overlooking the internal paths and gardens they are animated with balconies and windows that frame forest views.
Full-height sliding glass doors connect the blocks to the surrounding landscape, while the apartments are connected by external steel decks that provide an external space for each level.
For the "forest rooms", Space&Matter worked with local studio DELVA Landscape Architecture, which introduced a series of lawns, planters and seating areas as well as the central greenhouse.
"Terraces and balconies animate the inner streetscape, creating layered public-to-private thresholds that activate and support communal life within the neighbourhood," said Van Bentum.
"By breaking down the building volumes, the project integrates compact villas and apartment blocks into the surrounding urban fabric, creating a sensitive transition between the forest and adjacent neighbourhoods," he added.
The exteriors of the blocks have been finished in a mixture of "earthy reds, smoky blacks and sandy beiges", which were intended to reference the bark and soil of woodland while contrasting the green of the surrounding tree canopies.
Inside, exposed timber and white-painted walls create light and airy spaces, with the larger homes featuring double-height living and dining spaces within their fully-glazed corners.
Based in Amsterdam, Space&Matter was founded in 2009 by Sascha Glasl, Tjeerd Haccou and Marthijn Pool.
The studio has recently been working alongside White Arkitekter, SeArch and Atlas Architects on The Erven, a development of 519 homes in Hoofddorp that is informed by traditional Dutch farm buildings.
The photography is by Riccardo De Vecchi.
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