Aanbouw Atelier is an extension to a residential property in Sterrebeek, Belgium, designed by LAVA Architecten for a client who works across ceramics and jewelry. The brief required a studio space that could serve 2 distinct purposes: a ground-floor workshop open to students for classes, and an upper level containing a private studio and a reception area. The 2-level arrangement allows the professional and the personal to coexist within the same structure without requiring the client to separate their work from their home.

The ground-floor workshop is finished with concrete floors, a material suited to the demands of ceramic practice: durable, easy to clean, and honest about use. Wooden slabs line the ceiling, softening the industrial character of the concrete and introducing warmth to what would otherwise read as a purely functional space. The material combination is direct and practical rather than decorative, chosen for how it performs in a working studio.

The upper level offers a more private register: a personal workspace and a reception for clients and visitors, separated from the teaching activity below. The 2-level section gives the building a clear spatial logic that mirrors the client's working life, moving between the communal at ground level and the concentrated above.