arthur degeyter

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When architect Arthur Degeyter (°1919) welcomed me inhis house that forms part of a group of houses in thecentre of Bruges, I noticed straight away that, despitethe limited surface area of his patio, he had managed totransform it into a small city garden. Of course he usedboxwood, which he had recently trimmed. This is typicalof Degeyter, as is the interior with wide parquet boards,white walls and a single light over the dining table.Degeyter built houses using “open” architecture andmade extensive use of the typical “Degeyter ochrebricks”, which he used for both walls and floors. He alsotried to blend in each house with nature as much aspossible.

1. Many of your projects still have a contemporary feel, buthow would you describe your architectural style yourself?Modern, everything reduced to the simplest form possible,almost strictly minimalist, without skirting boards, doorposts,almost completely purified.This modernism started with the doctor’s house (Villa Defour)for which I received the first mention on the occasion of theVan de Ven prize in 1964.Personally, I like the white villas best. But a lot depends on theperiod so, for example, in the 1960s I designed a number ofvillas in white painted brick, or with flat roofs. Later, during theoil crisis, the spirit of the time changed and I then built morehouses with sloping roofs or made more extensive use ofochre bricks.

2. Which of the projects that you built do you regard asmost characteristic of your work, as the closest tofulfilling your vision?That still has to be my old house on the Zeeweg in Bruges.Villa Defour in Mouscroun and Villa Jult in Kortrijk are alsointeresting.And, of course, I also greatly appreciate Villa Vancaneyt inRumbeke. I think it’s very beautiful since it has hardly anyinterior doors and everything flows together. It was very nicethat the former owner of this villa really co-operated during thedesign phase.Another favourite is in Zandvoorde, where there is an estuary andwhere the house is located very close to the water.

3. Who are your favourite contemporary or historicalarchitects?Stephane Beel, Vincent Van Duysen, Architectenbureau LMSVermeersch, and among my contemporaries, Luc Dujardin.

4. What is striking is your measured and balanced, we’llcall it non-use, of colours? Do you dislike colour?No, colour can be beautiful, but I never used it because I mainlyused white or ochre bricks, for the floors, patios, walls, foreverything, and this meant that I didn’t need to use any colours.

5. Nature...I don’t want to say that I was also a landscape architect, althoughI actually did design the gardens for almost all the houses or

buildings I built. This is because I think that the garden has torelate to the architecture and possibly also because I feared thatthe owner would not design it as well. For me, the relationship ofa house with its environment is very important.

6. So how do you judge the town and country planning ofthe past few decades? You once said that it isn’t industrythat pollutes our environment, but the ill-consideredcutting up of extensive areas into hundreds of small plots.I still agree with that. There is no sound vision of town andcountry planning in Belgium. I much prefer houses to be next toeach other, to be in a group and thus form a whole surroundedby nature. What I dislike as well is the exaggerated use ofdifferent materials. Nowadays, all houses have roofs and wallsmade of different materials. I think it would be much better ifbrickworks were to produce just two rather than thirty differenttypes of facing bricks.In this respect, Flanders must be just about one of the ugliestregions in the world.Once again, a solution would be sound town and countryplanning, and of course good architects, because not allarchitects are fit to exercise their profession.

7. Your own house (Zeeweg) has a room, which on theplans you marked as “provisions and wines”. This soundmuch more noble, much more respectful, than thecontemporary term “cool storeroom”. May I concludefrom this that you do not only enjoy wine, but that youare an epicurean as well?No, quite frankly I am not a wine drinker, but I do enjoy good food.

8. You have designed several churches and abbeys(Veurne, Oostrozebeke, Beernem). Does the creation ofecclesiastical architecture differ from say domesticarchitecture?No, ecclesiastical architecture is the same as domestic architecture.An ecclesiastical building gets a religious character by using theright proportions, by using beautiful lines, but you also have to do thiswhen building regular houses. The religious feel of thoseecclesiastical building is nothing more than respecting proportions.

9. What does light mean to you?Sun(light) is very important. It is crucial that houses be correctlyoriented. There has to be light, yet shade is important to. With anuance of shade, intimacy can be evoked. Nevertheless, youalways have to make sure that there is enough light to read.Regarding lighting, this has to be incorporated in a subtlemanner, indirect or built-in where possible and definitely notspread over an entire ceiling. Lights should preferably beclustered in small groups.I always put a light over the dining table, because you alwayshave to be able to see what you are eating.Outside, I also try to place spotlights invisibly among the plantsas much as possible. For example, I really dislike ‘lanterns’mounted on outside walls.

Special thanks to Jeanpierre Dherdt for the photographs and information.

Nine Questions ...04 ... to Arthur Degeyter by Toon

© Photo R. Vanroelen

Villa DeFour in Mouscroun1964

hall

living room

exterior view

bedroom

exterior view

office

arthur degeyter

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