Hasta La Ideas

Chicago-based Studio Gang has completed a pair of residential buildings called the Q Residences in Amsterdam with balconies that “migrate in and out of the facade” and a public plaza that links them.

Studio Gang worked with local studio Rijnboutt to design the two structures, which are sited in the Buitenveldert neighbourhood in the south of the city and have 248 residences in total. Q Residences is Studio Gang’s first completed European project.

The project comprises a 23-storey structure called Quartz and an eight-storey structure called Qube that are connected by a public plaza designed by Dutch landscape designer Piet Oudolf.

“We designed Q Residences to strengthen residents’ connection to each other and to the ample green spaces that define Buitenveldert,” said founder Jeanne Gang.

“At ground level, Qube and Quartz form a new generous public plaza that brings people together around art and landscape.”

“And on Quartz, the balconies migrate in and out of the facade to extend sightlines diagonally in all directions and allow residents to be part of the building and in synch with the city and each other at the same time.”

Surrounded by post-war housing blocks, the Q Residences reimagine the local 1950s architecture with undulating facades and bright materials.

The taller of the structures, Quartz, has a wavy facade that the studio said “introduces an organic, sculptural presence to the neighborhood” while Qube was made more rectilinear in order to act as a “bridge” between Quartz and the local architecture.

Both structures consist of precast concrete panelling accented by bronze aluminium panelling.

Quartz has angled balconies created by the protruding concrete fins that line the facade. The corners of the building have been rounded.

“The rounded, glazed edges of the building further expand the frame from which inhabitants can view the city and park beyond, while also increasing natural light within living spaces,” said Studio Gang.

Oudolf’s design of the public plaza is meant to reference the “garden city tradition”.

The landscaped public space was designed to create a pedestrian-friendly zone that also connects other aspects of the block. It features retail spaces as well as year-round greenery.

The structures also have rooftop photovoltaic panels that “help Amsterdam advance its ambitious sustainability targets”, the studio said.

The Q Residences were developed by Dutch firm Kroonenberg Groep in collaboration with NEOO.

“Q Residences is a great example of how to introduce density to Buitenveldert while using the principles of the Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan [Amsterdam’s General Expansion Plan],” said Rijnboutt creative director Frederik Vermeesch.

Studio Gang, which was founded in Chigaco, opened a Paris office in 2017.

It has recently completed a number of skyscrapers in the United States including one in Downtown Brooklyn with an undulating facade and another in Hawaii with a design based on the form of the sugarcane plant.

The photography is by Kees Hummel. 

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