Way back in 1908, the ever-so-stately Villa Juliana in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands was built to the grandest of scales—think fanciful eaves, sculptural moldings, and Art Nouveau motifs—but fell upon hard times, and eventually was left completely uninhabited for a whopping sixty years. Recently, though, a family swooped in to save the manse, enlisting the Dutch firm Borren Staalenhoef Architects to renovate the dark, slightly "gloomy" place and add such necessities as a kitchen, a garage, and more storage space.
With this in mind, the team decided to leave the front of the home relatively untouched, and instead tack on a slightly wacky new wing—extending 86 feet back into the yard and soaking up all sorts of light through its glassy walls. The narrow extension's roof is lined in grass, rocks, and submarine-esque skylights—creating a rain-water collection system and a funky, unexpected greenhouse feel to the space. Basically if there was an award for the most contrasting of backs and fronts, the Villa Juliana would be a shoe-in. Take a look, below:
· New Nouveau: A Dutch Mansion Gets a Facelift [Architizer]