Captivated by a down at heel but still elegant 19th century Antwerp house that he passed by regularly, one day Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen noticed that the house appeared to be empty. Making inquiries, he discovered that it was for sale, at a surprisingly reasonable price. The catch was an unusual one — a hermit living in the attic. A clerk who once worked in the notary offices on the ground floor had taken up residence in the attic at some point, and now the agoraphobic elderly man was there for good. But this story has a happy ending — buying the house, Vincent struck up a cautious friendship with the hermit. Leaving him as undisturbed as possible, Vincent only added a skylight to the attic and a wall or two for privacy, in the meantime claiming the other two floors for himself. Such a lovely solution — so admire Vincent for his kindness. More here on T Magazine.
(photography by david spero)