DuPont™ Corian® creates a sleek and sophisticated façade to wrap an avant-garde residence projected by Koen Olthuis

A spectacular new waterside home in the Netherlands is distinctive in many ways - not least because of its innovative use of DuPont™ Corian® high-tech surface to create a cocoon of enduring elegance. DuPont™ Corian® has been valued for many years by architects and interior designers for its multiple talents and its famously robust reliability.

These qualities are now increasingly being adopted to form high-impact, low-maintenance exterior façades. For Villa New Water, DuPont™ Corian® in the classical Cameo White colour has been ingeniously applied to wrap and intriguingly shaped structure, from floor to walls to roof, including an open-air terrace with cutaway sections to let the sun and breeze flow in. DuPont™ Corian® also features to the interior, in kitchen installations that echo the organic shapes of the building.

Resistant to moisture and weather

Architect Koen Olthuis from Waterstudio.NL in Rijswijk explains his choice of material, “Building on a waterfront involves special building requirements and DuPont™ Corian® is the ideal solution for such difficult conditions. After a time, stucco work always becomes unsightly, but this product is completely impervious to moisture and the effects of weather. Decades from now, this façade will still look as good as it did on the day it was installed. It is practical and efficient, even for buildings that do not have to withstand waterfront locations.”

Building with distinction

Equally important in this instance, was the ability of DuPont™ Corian® to create some ‘special effects.’ The client wanted the villa to be something unique, a house that would still be modern in fifty years’ time. The architect therefore designed a dramatic structure with distinctive curves that are ‘seamlessly’ wrapped in DuPont™ Corian®.

He adds, “This material is so inspiring, I’m discovering new possibilities all the time.” Fortunately the client (who wishes to remain anonymous) was equally keen on the concept saying, “For the exterior, we didn’t change a thing.”

No conspicuous seams or edges

As an architect, Olthuis is always looking for the best balance between design and product. “Perhaps it's because of my background in industrial design,” he explains. “DuPont™ Corian® allowed me to realise the building exactly as I had envisaged it: with a seamless appearance and without distracting details such as eaves, window frames and roof overhangs, all things that take attention away from the real essence of the structure.”

The ‘curve appeal’ of DuPont™ Corian® has been used in this project for both horizontal and vertical, interior and exterior surfaces, from sunscreen casings to kitchen countertops. The effect is at once pure and minimalistic, while also being strikingly unusual.

With such a large amount of DuPont™ Corian® involved, the villa was no ordinary construction task for the builders, Van Leent Bouwbedrijf. However, the contractor was skilled in the fabrication and installation of Corian® and knew precisely how to apply the practical possibilities of the material to full advantage and thus was able to realise this very challenging project both on time and within budget.

High-tech and high-performance - for the foreseeable future

DuPont™ Corian® has earned a reputation for being practically indestructible, and these qualities are especially useful for exterior installations. This completely solid and homogenous material is stain resistant and non-porous, thus the worst of the weather will have no effect on it. It is also very easy to clean. “These façades are completely smooth. In years to come, they will still look like new,” promises Olthuis. And during this time, none of the usual exterior home maintenance, such as rendering, plastering, grouting or painting will be needed. Longevity is key to sustainability, but the environmental benefits go even further because DuPont™ Corian® can also be restored on site, if necessary, in most cases... or removed, re-formed and even reused elsewhere, although it is unlikely that unless the unforeseen happens, that this particular façade will need to be repaired.

Kitchen cupboards and cooking island

Apart from the star performance to the exterior, DuPont™ Corian® also plays a noteworthy supporting role to the interior. Here, Koen Olthuis has designed an impressive kitchen island with cantilevered breakfast bar, again seamlessly wrapped in this malleable material. “DuPont™ Corian® is resistant to water, acidity and high temperatures, and is therefore well-know for being perfect for a kitchen,” he says. The faces of kitchen cupboards have also been formed from the same sleek and sophisticated surface. In chic contrast to the smooth finish of the Corian® surfaces, various panels within the design have been fitted with a soft padding effect.

A sensational trend

The kind of sensational exterior use of the material as seen at Villa New Water, is part of a growing trend internationally to cover structures from commercial buildings to private residences in the long-lasting beauty of DuPont™ Corian®.

Source: DuPont™ Corian®

Photography: Koen Olthuis - Waterstudio.NL, all rights reserved

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