Collection

Merveille House

  • Date 1964
  • Address Bonnieux (France)

In 1964, the painter Louis Merveille and his wife, the writer and poet Karin Lessing, commissioned Charles Vandenhove to draw up the plans for their holiday home in the south of France. The clients owned a plot of land on the outskirts of the small village of Bonnieux in Provence.

As with the Repriels house, which he designed at the same time, the Merveille house is set within an unspoilt natural environment on a gently sloping plot. The compact rooms are organised according to the traditional division between day and night areas. The living room and kitchen are arranged in an L-shape around the open fire. Facing south-east, they open out onto the garden through large sliding glass doors. To the north-east, the four bedrooms are situated on either side of the bathroom.

From a structural and aesthetic point of view, this house is undeniably reminiscent of the Repriels House. As in Plainevaux, the architect has discreetly integrated the house into the landscape by using a flat roof and combining concrete with local materials – in this case, local stone. Similarly, inside, the vaulted terracotta ceiling is characteristic of the region. The visual appeal of this small house is further enhanced by the design of the chimney, whose shape is not without echoes of Le Corbusier’s influence on the Liège-based architect.