Belgian studio Graux & Baeyens Architecten has used "sober but brutal" materials to create a new atelier for painter and sculpture Stief Desmet.
Desmet already had one studio on his rural property in East Flanders, but it was too small to accommodate larger sculptures.

Graux & Baeyens designed his new space, Studio SDS, in the spirit of a large warehouse, but with some more intimate spaces slotted around the outside.
Materials vary in each space but are left exposed throughout, giving the interiors an industrial feel.

The form of the building is made up of two volumes. The first is a basic cuboid, which contains a double-height studio space. This is wrapped on two sides by a more irregular, single-storey volume that contains a study, a kitchen and bathroom facilities. The studio showcases the coldest materials, from white-painted breeze blocks to bare concrete.

The whole room is surrounded by a thick concrete parapet that can function as a seat or a work surface. It is matched by thick concrete lintels above the doors and windows, which have an austere but decorative quality.
Overhead, a terracotta tile ceiling is covered with lighting and heating fixtures arranged in geometric patterns.
In contrast, the surrounding rooms are lined with timber to create a warmer aesthetic.

Externally, the materials of both blocks are completely different. The studio has a brickwork exterior, while the smaller surrounding structure has bare breeze-block walls.
The studi...