Front elevation of the rooftop home above the existing apartment block
Street view of the dark rooftop extension above a brick apartment block
Rear view of the brick apartment block and dark rooftop extension
Rear façade of the existing brick apartment building
Axonometric model of the apartment plan and roof terrace
Folding glass wall opened between the kitchen and roof terrace
Open-plan kitchen and living room viewed from the terrace
Open kitchen and living room extending along a wall of windows
Living room organized around a broad brick and concrete fireplace
Wall-sized timber bookshelf filled with books and small objects
Freestanding timber kitchen cabinet dividing the open living room
White and timber storage cabinets shaping the apartment entrance
White cabinetry wrapping a timber-lined corner niche
Deep timber-lined niche built into the white interior wall
Timber bookshelves meeting the tiled fireplace at the living-room corner
Covered balcony with dark railing and vertically lined walls
Dining area with black table, white cabinetry and terrace glazing
Timber kitchen counter running beside floor-to-ceiling glazing
Long corridor ending at the brick fireplace and terrace door
Unfinished white interior with recessed timber shelving
Unfinished open apartment with long windows and white partitions
Unfinished interior showing timber frames between open rooms
Timber stair descending beside a retained exposed brick wall
Timber stair rising beside built-in cabinetry and a white radiator
Entrance hall retaining a concrete beam above white doors
Full-height timber storage wall beside the bright kitchen
Terrace view through glazing to the timber kitchen and dining area
Rooftop terrace beside full-height folding glass doors
Long rooftop deck overlooking the surrounding city roofs
Sectional physical model of the rooftop dwelling above the building
Massing model of the tall existing block and set-back rooftop addition

Lincoln is a 140 sqm roof extension of an apartment in an urbanized area of Brussels.
The new roof hosts the living area of the apartment and offers two outdoor spaces. The existing floor was transformed into a private bedroom area.

SCALE
Barely visible from the street the extension responds to a new dimension, a roof-dimension. With a set-back, the new volume tends to be independent. Embracing an open view on the city, its landscape is a collection of roofs and far away towers.

UNDER ONE ROOF
One continuous roof lays on five cores. Completely transparent on both orientations, big large frames from floor to ceiling give the impression of a totally opened and suspended space.
At one point only, the roof opens up above the large in-between space connecting the two living areas, bringing morning light to the front façade and characterizing this space below with its higher and tilted ceiling. 

CORES
The existing situation had 3 volumes scattered on the roof; the circulation core and two ventilation shafts. By inflating them with functions they become the structure of the plan.
The project is a fluid living space articulated by five cores: the circulation core in the center, the kitchen and the loggia on the facades and the sanitary and technical cores on the sides. These cores hosts all functions consequently characterizing the four corners of the plan.

MATERIAL
Cores are white volumes. Inside the thin white skin covering the cores, texture is reveled depending on the function. Okoumé multiplex for shelfs, buffet or bar, construction ceramic blocs and concrete for the chimney, wood and cement fiber for the logia and composite marble for toilets.

Location
BE, Brussels, Rue Lincoln
Works
Roof extension + transformation
Role
Complete mission, design and construction
typology
Reversed duplex
Use
Residential
Surface
210 m2
Client
Private
Engineer
JZH & Partners
Date
2014-2017
Status
Built
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
Awards
- Contemporary Architecture Prize - Uccle - 2018 - Highly Commended - WorldArchitectureAwards - 2018 - Nomination for Archdaily Best Project - 2018

Drawings

Existing apartment plan with the intervention highlighted centrally
Upper-floor plan organized around the stair and living spaces
Longitudinal section through the rooftop addition and central stair
Cross-section through the rooftop volume and rooms below
Building section through the stair and split-level interior rooms

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