An Old Dutch Row House Is Reimagined as a Light-Filled Haven

It’s easy to see how Hidden House got its name. On one of the oldest streets in Rotterdam in the Kralinger neighborhood, the home is set back 100 feet, tucked behind a fortress of greenery. At one time, it served as the quarters for the gardener of a nearby castle, Slot Honingen, which was torn down in in 1426. Fast forward to 2016, and Erica Chladová and Robert van der Pol, founders of Rotterdam studio LMNL, scooped up the old row house with plans to give it an update.

"When we bought it, there was no insulation, single pane glass, rotten floor beams, exposed pipes, and a leaking roof," say Erica, an architect and landscape architect, and Robert, a landscape architect. They proceeded with a gut renovation of the modest 1,000-square-foot plan, using sustainable materials and strategies that maximized storage, space, and light.