14 Villa Kameleon in Zoersel/Belgium
Villa Kameleon, Monnikendreef 3, 2980 Zoersel, Belgium
Picture: © Willco Products
Villa Kameleon is a newly built care home with permanent living accommodation for 9 adults with disabilities. When a grandfather was struggling to find a warm and comfortable home for his granddaughter, he commissioned the design of an accessible and modern building where care and quality of life were central. Villa Kameleon was built a stone's throw from the Monnikenheide- Spektrum – vzw Emmaüs estate in a wooded area in the green zone around Antwerp.
The building is hexagonal and accommodates 9 adult residents who live there under supervision. They each have a modern private studio of 30 m² and share a large communal dining and living area. Living takes precedence over care, and as a result Villa Kameleon in no way resembles a classic care centre. There are no long corridors or rectangular rooms here: each room is located in one of the six corners of the building, so that each resident has two different views of the surrounding landscape. Thanks to the central skylight, there is plenty of natural light throughout the building. Because of the building's hexagonal shape, it deliberately appears smaller than it is. Its location in an open space in the wooded surroundings makes Villa Kameleon almost camouflage itself as the animal of the same name. Green ceramic tiles in 3 shades are interspersed with a bright, fine-grained decorative plaster.
Architect: | Felt Architecture & Design, Jasper Stevens and Karel Verstraeten, www.felt.works |
Project owner: | Monnikenheide-Spectrum, www.monnikenheide-spectrum.be |
Installer: | Conings NV, www.coningsnv.be |
ETICS: | ETICS using EPS insulation, 160 mm thickness and silicone finishing coat, grain size 1 mm
ETICS with EPS insulation, 160 mm thickness, with ceramic tiles in 3 different shades of green with enamel finish. none of the tiles are cut, the dimensions of the facades and the joinery are such that only full tiles were used. It is striking that the same ceramic tiles were used in the interior as a recurring accent throughout the building. |
ETICS manufacturer: | Willco Products NV, www.willcoproducts.be |
Member of: | Xthermo, www.xthermo.be
EAE company member |
Complementing energy-efficiency measures: |
n. a. |
Financing measures: | Great private financial commitment of the grandfather of one of the residents. He gave the purchased land on long lease and financed the construction costs of the project. Monnikenheide Spektrum will eventually pay back the invested capital via interest-free loan. |