4-bed house, Lembeke

In 1978, Mark De Paepe designed this modernist doctor’s residence in Lembeke with separate entrances for the home and the practice. The former practice comprises several rooms and connects to the house through the laundry room, allowing visitors to be received separately from the private living areas. The villa offers approximately 422 m² of living space. De Paepe arranged linked concrete-block volumes around sheltered outdoor spaces, with deep-set windows and broad roof overhangs. Inside, timber ceilings and dark natural stone flooring tie together the changes in level. A low masonry wall encloses the sunken sitting area, where a circular opening above the fireplace brings in daylight. The dining area and a second sitting area open around it. A narrow coloured-glass window adds a note of colour against the white-painted masonry. Large sliding doors connect the living areas to two terraces and a southwest-facing garden with mature trees and shrubs. The plot extends to around 1,718 m². The semi-open kitchen adjoins the dining area, and the ground floor also includes an entrance hall with a guest WC and an integral garage. An open staircase with timber treads and a red handrail leads to four bedrooms, a bathroom with a bath and a separate WC. A careful refurbishment would allow the house to be adapted for everyday living while retaining the sunken lounge, the natural stone flooring and the relationship between the living spaces and the garden.