This shop and office complex by Dutch architects MVRDV is disguised as
an old farmhouse, but its walls and roof are actually made from glass.
The building is located in the market square of small Dutch town Schijndel, where MVRDV
partner Winy Maas grew up. The town suffered damages during World War
II, and Maas has been campaigning since the 1980s to replace a destroyed
structure in the space between the church and the town hall.
Thirty years and six failed proposals later, the architects and the
town council agreed to develop the site within the traditional building
envelope specified by the town planners.
MVRDV reinterpreted this volume in glass, then compiled photographs of
traditional local farmhouses by artist Frank van der Salm and created a
collage of images to apply to each surface of the facade. Using a
fritting technique the architects were able to print the images straight
onto the glass, creating the illusion of brick walls and a thatched
roof.
The actual windows and doors don't line up with the printed images,
so entrances look like they pass through brick walls and windows appear
as semi-transparent blobs.
More information on the Glass Farm's site: Glass Farmhouse
