Nai010 | Kasteel Groeneveld | Huis in Frankrijk

It is unknown how many Dutch people have a 'maison secondaire' in the French countryside. Estimates vary between 200,000 and 300,000 houses. The book Huis in Frankrijk shows and describes the phenomenon of Dutch people conquering the French countryside: buying houses, renovating them and living in them part-time.

Is this because of something we miss in the Netherlands? If so, what are we looking for? And can you see that the owners of a French house are Dutch. What do they bring from home, and what do they cherish as 'typically French'?

Identity, adaptation and projection can be read from the interior of these French-Dutch houses. The mix of two cultures can be seen there with IKEA as a subtle connecting force. Theo Baart and Sake Elzinga photographed the great diversity of houses, Tracy Metz wrote three essays and interviewed a number of homeowners about their 'maison de campagne'. Rudi Wester selected poems by Dutch poets that express their French experience. Our design turned all these ingredients into an attractive whole.