Hasta La Ideas

An angular metal-clad canopy now projects over a public square at the entrance to Rotterdam Centraal station, which reopened last week following an extensive remodelling by a team including Dutch firm Benthem Crouwel Architects (+ slideshow).

A project team called Team CS, comprising Benthem Crouwel Architects, MVSA Architects and landscape firm West 8, was tasked with redeveloping the existing station built in 1957, which was struggling to meet the demands of a modern transportation hub.

The architects expanded the main station complex and updated the surrounding public spaces to improve the building’s integration with its urban context.

“The new station is not only larger, brighter and more orderly than the former, but also has an international feel; it beautifully complements both the efficiency of the hi-speed stop and Rotterdam city’s bold ambitions for urban development and renewal,” said the architects in a statement.

A modest entrance on the north side of the station reflects the character of its historic surroundings and the smaller number of passengers who use it, while the shiny canopy above the main entrance signals the station’s presence to those approaching from the city.

“The roof of the hall, fully clad with stainless steel, gives rise to the building’s iconic character and points to the heart of the city,” said the architects.

The underside of the projecting structure is partly clad in wood and envelops a glazed wall that opens up to a bright forecourt with an angular wooden ceiling.

“The wood finish on the inside of the hall, combined with the structural wooden beams of the platform roof creates a warm and welcoming ambience, inviting visitors to linger,” the architects added.

Stone floor slabs with a reddish hue continue from the esplanade into the station’s forecourt, helping to enhance the connection between the external and internal spaces.

Parking for 750 cars and 5200 bicycles is hidden away underneath the esplanade. Meanwhile, services for buses, taxis and trams, have been relocated to free up space for pedestrians.

The roof above the platforms is made from glass so passengers arrive into an airy space filled with natural daylight. Light also reaches the lower levels through large voids containing staircases and escalators.

Solar panels partly covering the roof have a high level of transparency to prevent them reducing the amount of light entering the station.

A narrow horizontal LED screen in the main hall was donated by the Port of Rotterdam and displays imagery relating to the city’s heritage as an important port.

Photography is by Jannes Linders, apart from where otherwise stated.

Here’s some more information from the project team:

Rotterdam Centraal

Rotterdam Centraal Station is one of the most important transport hubs in The Netherlands. With 110,000 passengers a day the public transport terminal has as many travellers as Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. In addition to the European network of the High Speed Train (HST), Rotterdam Centraal is also connected to the light rail system, RandstadRail. With the advent of both the HST and RandstadRail the number of daily travellers at Rotterdam Centraal is expected to increase to approximately 323,000 by 2025.

Rotterdam HST is the first stop in the Netherlands when travelling from the south and is strategically positioned in the middle of Europe, with Schiphol only twenty minutes and Paris a mere two and a half hours away. Hence the new station is not only larger, brighter and more orderly than the former, but also has an international feel; it beautifully complements both the efficiency of the Hispeed stop and the Rotterdam city’s bold ambitions for urban development and renewal. The station matches in all respects the practicality, capacity, comfort and allure, of the central stations of Madrid, Paris, London and Brussels.

Integration in urban environment

One of the fundamental challenges of Rotterdam Centraal station was the difference in the urban character of the north and south side of the station. The entrance on the north side has a modest design, appropriate to the character of the neighbourhood Provenierswijk and the smaller number of passengers. The entrance gradually connects to the city. In the Provenierswijk the character of the 19th-century Dutch provincial town is strengthened. Large architectural extensions are avoided on this side of the station, the presence of green is ameliorated and the station is transparent.

In contrast, the grand entrance on the city side is clearly the gateway to the high-rise urban centre. Here the station derives its new international, metropolitan identity from the hall made of glass and wood. The roof of the hall, fully clad with stainless steel, gives rise to building’s iconic character and points to the heart of the city.

Now Rotterdam Centraal has the appropriate structure and dimensions for the urban landscape; it is in balance with the heights that characterise the metropolis and simultaneously reflects the human scale. The city of Rotterdam is drawn to the new station via the compaction of the small-scale urban texture surrounding the public transport terminal. The entire railway zone becomes one with the city. This finer urban texture with new sight lines and a mixture of living and working will dramatically improve the quality of life and the environment of the station area.

The esplanade in front of the station is a continuous public space. To achieve this simplicity a parking garage for 750 cars and a bicycle shed for 5,200 bicycles are located under the square. The tram station is moved to the east side of the station, so the platforms broaden the square. Bus, tram, taxi and the area for short-term parking are integrated into the existing urban fabric and do not constitute barriers. The red stone of the station floor continues into the forecourt, merging the station with the city. Pedestrian and cycling routes are pleasant and safe and arriving travellers now have dignified entrance to the city, free from traffic.

Interior and appearance

Incorporation of natural light, the warmth of the sun’s rays and a modern look are important elements in the design. The platform roof on the Proveniersside is transparent. When the train drives into the station, there is an almost tangible feeling of being enshrouded in the station building. Upon entering in the bright high hall through the centre side, the traveler gets an overview of the entire complex and a view to the trains that are waiting invitingly along the platforms.

The wood finish on the inside of the hall, combined with the structural wooden beams of the platform roof creates a warm and welcoming ambience, inviting visitors to linger. The largely transparent roof structure which covers all the tracks over a length of 250 meters, flood the platforms with light. The glass plates of the roof vary the level of light transmittance by utilising different solar cells patterns, which produce an ever-changing and fascinating play of shadows on the platforms.

Routing and layout

The routing through the station is logical; travellers are guided by a direct view of the trains and by the daylight that penetrates to the traveler’s passage via the voids that extend through the transparent roof platform and down to the stairs. Because of its transparency the widened traveler’s passage, lined with commercial functions, forms a natural part of the station. Escalators, lifts and stairs lead up to the new platforms, which feature inviting and comfortable platform furniture. On the west side of the station there is a footbridge over the tracks for travellers in transit. This footbridge also functions as an escape route in the event of an emergency.

The passenger terminal is a national and international hub that connects train, tram, bus and subway. The public transport terminal is designed for passenger comfort, which is visible in the different zones of the station. It includes commercial spaces, a lounge, restaurants, offices, parking for cars and bicycles. In the spacious concourse the passenger service functions are conveniently arranged. There is travel information, an information point, the Dutch Railways (NS) travellers shop, ticket vending machines and commercial functions. The grand café and the NS-lounge offer spectacular views across the hall and the adjacent tracks. Waiting areas in the hall and the passage are linked to the passenger flows, with areas both for browsing and quick shopping.

The new Rotterdam Centraal Station is a pleasant, open and transparent public transport terminal which functions as an iconic meeting point. Interwoven into the urban network, the station connects the diverse characters of the city and marks the beginning of Rotterdam’s cultural axis. This modern and efficient building offers travellers to and from the port city all the amenities and comfort they could want or need in the present and the future.

Sustainability

Windows with 130,000 solar cells cover 10,000 m2 of the total roof area of 28,000 m2. This is the largest application of solar energy in a station roof in The Netherlands and is also one of the largest rooftop solar projects in Europe. The solar cells are placed on the parts of the roof that get the most sun, taking into account the high buildings around Rotterdam Centraal. The glass panels vary in light transmittance by using different patterns in the solar cells. Where the roof has the greatest efficiency in terms of sunlight, the cell density is the highest. The solar cells that are integrated in the roof have a high degree of transparency, so there is ample light. The solar cells represent an 8% reduction in the station’s CO2 emissions. The cells are expected to generate 320 megawatt per annum, which is enough energy for 100 households.

History

The former station was designed by Sybold of Ravesteyn in 1957. However, this post-war building was no longer suitable for the current passenger numbers and complexity of the transport hub. In order to maintain the connection with the past after the demolition of the building, several characteristic elements from the former station can be found in the new Rotterdam Centraal. The Speculaasjes, two typical granite sculptures are placed above the access to the bike tunnel. The beginning of the esplanade is defined by two flagpoles, which were also part of the former station. Moreover, the letters ROTTERDAM CENTRAAL and the station clock are proudly displayed on the current façade as a tribute to the past.

LED screen

In the main hall of the station a LED screen of 40 x 4.5 meters has been installed. To emphasise the importance of the port and to strengthen the bond between the city and the port, the Port of Rotterdam donated the LED screen to the City of Rotterdam. By showing elements of the port on this LED screen, the Port of Rotterdam wants to give the thousands of travellers who arrive daily in Rotterdam the feeling that they have entered a port city, even though the port has slowly disappeared from the cityscape, due to seawards development. Now travellers can enjoy views of Europe’s largest port at all hours and times of the day.

Team CS is a cooperation between Benthem Crouwel Architects, MVSA Meyer en Van Schooten Architecten and West 8. This unique combination of designers came to existence in 2003, when the competition for the new Rotterdam Centraal was issued.

Client: Gemeente Rotterdam and ProRail
Architect Team CS: a cooperation between Benthem Crouwel Architects, MVSA Meyer en van Schooten Architecten
and West 8
Gross floor area: 46,000 m²
Gross floor area urban design: 50,000 m²
Location: Stationsplein 1, 3013 AJ Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Lead architects: Jan Benthem, Marcel Blom, Adriaan Geuze, Jeroen van Schooten
Project team: Arman Akdogan, Anja Blechen, Freek Boerwinkel, Amir Farokhian, Joost Koningen, Joost van Noort, Falk Schneeman, Daphne Schuit, Matthijs Smit (†), Andrew Tang, Wouter Thijssen, Joost Vos
Structural engineer: Arcadis and Gemeentewerken Rotterdam
Mechanical services: Arcadis and Gemeentewerken Rotterdam
Building physics: Arcadis and Gemeentewerken Rotterdam
Contractor: Bouwcombinatie TBI Rotterdam Centraal (BTRC), Iemants NV (zuidhal)

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News: Dutch studio MVRDV has revealed its competition-winning design to create a bowl-shaped art depot for the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam with a mirrored exterior and a rooftop sculpture garden.

MVRDV‘s Boijmans Collection Building will provide Rotterdam’s most important art gallery with a six-storey storage facility to house over 125,000 paintings, sculptures and objects, most of which will be accessible to the public.

Proposed for the northern end of the OMA-designed Museumpark, the building will have a round shape that tapers outward towards the top to minimise its footprint on the park. Its entire exterior will be made from mirrored glass, allowing the building to reflect its surroundings.

A public pathway will zigzag up through all six storeys, leading up from a lobby and cafe on the ground floor towards exhibition galleries and a restaurant at the top. These spaces will open out to the rooftop sculpture garden featuring a Futuro, the futuristic house developed in the 1960s by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen.

The levels in between will offer a series of exhibition areas curated by the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, as well as a look inside various depots and restoration workshops. Some artworks will be displayed within these spaces, and could be swapped with the use of mobile storage racks.

“A public art depot is a new phenomenon to the Netherlands; normally these depots are hidden in the periphery of cities,” said MVRDV co-founder Winy Maas.

“It is a bold initiative that will raise the attention of the international museum circles. It offers space to Museum Boijmans van Beuningen and will help it to strengthen its international profile.”

The building will also include offices, logistics rooms and quarantine areas, as well as private art collection rooms that can be rented through the museum. Completion is scheduled for 2017.

Here’s the full announcement from MVRDV:

MVRDV wins competition Collection Building
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam

Today the city of Rotterdam, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen and MVRDV present the design for the new Collection Building. The building with a surface of 15,000m2 is an open art depot featuring exhibition halls, a sculpture roof garden and a restaurant. The public can see what’s going on behind the scenes in a museum and private art collectors will be able to store their own collection in ideal Museum conditions. The design – a reflective round volume – responds to its surroundings, Rotterdam’s Museumpark in which it will be completed in 2017. The allocated budget is 50 million Euro.

Collection Building is an art depot open to the public. A public route zigzags through the building, from the lobby on the ground floor where a café can be found up to an exhibition space, sculpture garden and restaurant on the roof. On the way up the route passes along and through art depots and restoration workshops. In depots visible from the route, the exhibition can be changed on a daily basis by simply moving storage racks so each visit to the building can offer a unique experience. On three floors the route passes through exhibition spaces which will be programmed by Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen.

The building – which will store the precious art collection of Rotterdam – will also have spaces not accessible to the general public. For example logistics, quarantine and room for private art collections whose owners can visit their art and even enjoy it in private spaces comparable to the art-equivalent of a sky box. This is a new commercial service offered by the museum. Additionally depots and an office of philanthropic foundation De Verre Bergen will be located in the Collection Building.

The roof featuring a restaurant, sculpture garden and exhibition space offers wide views over Rotterdam and will be the new home for the Futuro, the ufo-shaped house of Finish architect Matti Suuronen.

The Collection Building will be realised on the northern edge of Rotterdams Museumpark, realised by OMA with Yves Brunier in 1994. In order to spare the park, the volume is designed as a compact round volume with a small footprint and will be clad with a reflective glass facade. This will make the building less visible and allow reflections, the public can see what is happening elsewhere in the park. Where needed the reflection will be lesser for transparency and to avoid unwanted light effects.

40% of the 15,000m2 will be visible or accessible to the public. The building will feature seven different climatic conditions facilitating ideal conditions for art storage, offices and the public. The ambition is to reach sustainability classification BREEAM Excellent.

In the autumn of 2013 five architecture teams presented their designs for the Collection Building in a competition won by MVRDV. The other contenders were Koen Van Velsen, Harry Gugger with Barcode Architects, Neutelings Riedijk and Mad with NIO. MVRDV was disqualified from the competition after an alleged breach of the regulations but was vindicated in a legal procedure and declared official winner. MVRDV won the competition together with Pieters Bouwtechniek, IGG Consultants and DGMR Consultants. Expected completion is envisioned for 2017.

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This hilltop staircase by Dutch firm NEXT Architects appears to create a continuous pathway, but it’s actually impossible to walk round more than once without climbing off (+ slideshow).

NEXT Architects designed the rusting steel structure for a grassy peak in Carnisselande, a suburb south of Rotterdam, where it provides a viewpoint overlooking the city skyline.

Rather than designing a simple loop, the architects based the form of the structure on the single-surface volume of a Möbius strip. This means the surface of the pathway wraps around onto its underside, making it impossible to walk around the entire periphery.

“Based on the principal of the Möbius strip, the continuous route of the stair is a delusion – upside becomes underside becomes upside,” explained the architects. “The suggestion of a continuous route is therefore, in the end, an impossibility.”

The structure is built from pre-weathered Corten steel, giving it a vivid orange tone that contrasts with the bright green of the grass below.

It was completed as part of a local art initiative entitled The Elastic Perspective.

This isn’t the first time NEXT Architects has used the Möbius as the basis for a design – the studio also recently unveiled plans for a wavy bridge in China with one continuous surface.

Photography is by Sander Meisner.

Here’s a project description from NEXT Architects:

The Elastic Perspective

A rusty steel ring is gently draped upon a grass hill in Carnisselande, a Rotterdam suburb. It’s a giant circular stair leading the visitor up to a height that allows an unhindered view of the horizon and the nearby skyline of Rotterdam. The path makes a continuous movement and thereby draws on the context of the heavy infrastructural surrounding of ring road and tram track. While a tram stop represents the end or the start of a journey, the route of the stairway is endless.

However, the continuity and endlessness have a double meaning. Based on the principal of the Möbius strip, the continuous route of the stair is a delusion – upside becomes underside becomes upside. It has only one surface and only one boundary. The suggestion of a continuous route is therefore, in the end, an impossibility.

The Elastic Perspective is a local art plan for which NEXT architects designed this stair. The project reflects on the ambiguous relationship of the inhabitants of the Rotterdam suburb Carnisselande with their mother-town, which is expressed in both attraction and repulsion. “The view on Rotterdam is nowhere better, then from Carnisselande” as one of the locals put it.

The circular stair offers the suburbians a view on the Rotterdam skyline – only a couple of kilometers ahead – but forces them to retrace their steps back into their suburban reality. Rotterdam, by tram just minutes away, but in perception and experience tucked behind infrastructure and noise barriers; far away, so close.

Location: Carnisselande, Barendrecht NL
Client: Municipality of Barendrecht
Programme: Local Art plan
Design: NEXT architects, Amsterdam
Engineering: ABT consult, Velp
Contractor: Mannen van Staal, Leeuwarden
Budget: 150.000 euro

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Dutch studio NL Architects used turquoise-coloured bricks to build this apartment block in Rotterdam, which staggers at the top to make room for sunny balconies on one side (+ slideshow).

NL Architects was one of seven firms invited to design buildings for a new residential development in the Nieuw-Crooswijk neighbourhood. Each architect was encouraged to include “elaborate details” in their designs to give variety to the different facades.

This 15-storey tower is the tallest building within its surroundings, so the architects staggered the five uppermost floors to create south-facing sun decks that aren’t shaded beneath the roof of the floor above.

Each floor is the same size, which means these upper storeys project outwards on the opposite side of the building to create the impression that the building is leaning over.

“We wanted to displace the floors in a way that would create a sunny terrace on one side and an interesting facade on the other,” architect Kamiel Klaasse told Dezeen, describing the overall effect as a “freaky cornice”.

The designers named the building Kuifje, the Dutch name for Tintin, to draw comparisons between the hairstyle of the famous cartoon character and the unusual profile of the tower.

Rather than matching the red brick of its neighbours, the walls of the tower are built from turquoise bricks that were made by a process called engobing.

“The aqua-marine effect is caused by something we call engobe, which includes a coloured clay slip coated in this case with copper oxide,” said Klaasse.

Two apartments are contained on each of the building’s 14 main floors, creating a total of 28 units that each feature one double bedroom, an open-plan kitchen and living room, and a study.

Apartments on the regular floors don’t feature sun decks, but do come with smaller recessed balconies.

Photography is by Luuk Kramer.

Here’s a project description from NL Architects:

B05 “Kuifje” Rotterdam

Nieuw-Crooswijk is a residential area in Rotterdam, strategically located near the city centre and Kralingse Bos, a beautiful park. “Everything within 10 minutes.” Large parts have recently been demolished and will soon be reconstructed.

Seven architecture offices were invited to contribute to a differentiated ‘cityscape’. The objective was to create expressive architecture; the focus on refining the facades by to introducing elaborate details; accentuating entrances, articulating bay windows and balconies, introducing intricate brickwork, pronounced window frames and delicate fences: sculptural on the micro scale.

Each of the invited offices designed several blocks that are sprinkled around the area. In order to manage the resulting complexity an experimental organisational system was invented: one single ‘back office’ would draw up all plans and develop them into coherent architecture. ABT is responsible for what is ‘under the hood’; the selected architects can as such concentrate on detailing the facades…

The developer, Ontwikkelings Combinatie Nieuw Crooswijk/Proper-Stok Groep, asked NL Architects to design several of what were called ‘specials’: seven apartment blocks that presumably will play an important role in the area for their position or height.

B05 is part of a series of 7 designs for Nieuw Crooswijk that all emphasise a building part, mostly the outdoor space, to create a both functional and sculptural quality.

B05, or Kuifje (Tintin), is positioned in the second block along the Boezemlaan that is now under construction. B05 is the tallest structure in this cluster; a 15 stories tower, two apartments per floor. The first 10 floor go up straight, but after reaching the maximum height of the neighbours, the building starts deforming.

The highest floors lean forward, piercing through the building line, creating a distinct silhouette. A kind of super sized cornice comes into being.

The standard floors all feature a loggia facing south west. By pushing the upper floors the penthouses can all feature an additional balcony over the full width of the apartment with a sensational view over the skyline of Rotterdam.

Location: Boezemlaan, Nieuw Crooswijk, Rotterdam
Client: OCNC, Woonstad Rotterdam, Proper-Stok Groep, ERA Contour
Program: housing (28 units), retail space, total 3,600 sqm
Process: design 2008, start construction 2010, completion 2013
NL Architects: Pieter Bannenberg, Walter van Dijk, Kamiel Klaasse
Project Architect: Sarah Möller
Collaborators: Thijs van Bijsterveldt, Wim Sjerps, Stefan Schülecke, Florent Le Corre, Gerbrand van Oostveen, Gen Yamamoto
Structural Engineering and Working Drawings: Adviesbureau voor Bouwtechniek (ABT)
Contractor: ERA Contour

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News: architect Rem Koolhaas’ studio OMA has completed its colossal “vertical city” in Rotterdam, the Netherlands (+ slideshow).

OMA designed the giant De Rotterdam complex for its home city, where the building sits on the south bank of the Maas river.

The 44-storey interconnected glass towers span a width of over a hundred metres and remain roughly the same floor area for the entirety of the building’s 150-metre height.

“We made a building that consists of separate volumes that were slightly shifted vis-a-vis each other so that it was very adaptable,” Rem Koolhaas told Dezeen during a tour of the building today.

“We could easily replace one part with another part and therefore accommodate different logics and arguments,” he added. “This shifting creates a large building, but a large building that is a very dynamic presence in the city.”

Overlapping blocks form the three towers that all share a plinth, in which lobbies and public spaces are located.

These blocks contain separate office spaces, residential apartments, hotel and conference facilities, restaurants and cafes. Workers and residents share the conference, sport and restaurant facilities.

The building is named after one of the ships that transported Dutch immigrants to America from 1873 to the 1970s.

Rem Koolhaas recently accepted an award for the best tall building of the year for the CCTV Headquarters in Beijing, ten years after declaring he wanted to “kill the skyscraper”.

Here’s some information from OMA:

De Rotterdam

OMA today marks the completion of De Rotterdam, a mixed-use, 160,000-metre-square slab-tower conceived as a “vertical city” on the river Maas.

Ellen van Loon: “Efficiency has been a central design parameter from day one. The extreme market forces at play throughout the course of the project, far from being a design constraint, have in fact reinforced our original concept. The result is a dense, vibrant building for the city.”

With the building’s completion, a critical mass has been established on the Kop van Zuid, realising the long-established vision of a second city centre south of the Maas. The building is named after one of the original ships on the Holland America Line, which from 1873 to the late 1970s transported thousands of emigrating Europeans bound for New York from the Wilhelmina Pier, next to which De Rotterdam is situated.

The three stacked and interconnecting towers of De Rotterdam rise 44 floors to a height of 150 meters and span a width of over 100 meters. Nevertheless, the building is exceptionally compact, with a mix of programs organised into distinct but overlapping blocks of commercial office space, residential apartments, hotel and conference facilities, restaurants and cafes.

Office employees, residents and hotel guests are brought together in conference, sport and restaurant facilities. The building’s shared plinth is the location of the lobbies to each of the towers, creating a pedestrianised public hub by means of a common hall.

Rem Koolhaas: “Despite its scale and apparent solidity, the building’s shifted blocks create a constantly changing appearance, different from every part of the city. The fact that it stands today represents a small triumph of persistence for the city, the developer, the contractor and the architects.”

The various phases of design and construction were supervised by partners-in-charge Rem Koolhaas, Ellen van Loon and Reinier de Graaf, and associate-in-charge Kees van Casteren. De Rotterdam is developed by MAB Development and OVG Real Estate.

Project: A mixed-use vertical city
Status: Commission 1997, groundbreaking December 2009, completion November 2013
Clients: De Rotterdam CV, The Hague (Joint venture MAB, The Hague / OVG, Rotterdam)
Location: Rotterdam, Netherlands
Site: Former harbour waterfront between KPN tower and Cruise Terminal at Kop van Zuid
Program: Total 162,000m2: offices 72,000m2; 240 apartments 34,5000m2; hotel (278 rooms) / congress / restaurant 19,000m2; retail / F&B 1,000m2; leisure 4,500m2; parking (approx. 650 vehicles) 31,000m2

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