Hercule House is designed by Luxembourg-based architecture practice 2001, and it’s a concrete and glass volume stands out against the neighboring farm houses and suburban villas in its monolithic monumentality. It is a bold sculptural statement that takes advantage of the sloped terrain, let’s take a closer look at it.
A gentle slope leads down to the house’s basement level with a fitness and spa area, laundry room, wine-cellar and the garage, in the middle of which are the living quarters. Conceived as a large open-plan living room that also encompasses the kitchen and dining area, the space opens up to a sunken courtyard which allows plenty of natural light to illuminate the interiors, , as well as the adjacent garage and fitness room, concealed as they are behind translucent panels.
Above ground, the cubic volume houses three bedrooms on two floors. On the shorter street and garden sides, the facades are designed as curtain walls lined in reflective glass that provides both solar protection and privacy, not to mention expansive views of the surroundings. It’s also a clever way to integrate the monolithic volume into the leafy neighbourhood by reflecting the landscape around it. The south façade is also made of concrete but is punctured by a series of strategically placed deep-set windows.
The interior design shares the same austere, brutalist sensibility that characterizes the building exterior. Throughout the house, exposed concrete walls and ceilings bring the building’s structure to the stripped down aesthetic, which is enhanced by trim-less, built-in furnishings such as light fittings, cupboards and wardrobes, a subdued color palette of neutral tones, and a total lack of decorative elements. There’s a minimum of furniture, which is also very laconic, just like the rest of the house.