Repurposing military depot to Art Centre
Client Foundation Art Fort at Vijfhuizen
In co-operation with Ramon Janssen
'Kunstfort bij Vijfhuizen' started a design competition for a centre of contemporary art in a former military depot: The Genieloods. This centre of art is located at the entrance of an military fortress which belongs to UNESCO World Heritage.
The Genieloods is plain and pure: its beauty is in the simplicity and unpretentiousness of the building. We see the monument as a museum piece on its own. It should be presented with great pride, as if on a pedestal. Neither wrapping it up or covering the inside are good solutions. Nor is adding volume of any kind, because it will harm the pure and modest nature of the hangar. The only way not to damage the building is to add volume underneath it. So that is exactly what UP does.
First an I-Beam is placed underneath the hangar. Than the Genieloods can be lifted and the new volume added. The beam bridges the gap between old and new. The Genieloods now looks over the dike towards the old fortress and has become a recognizable icon for the site.
The project was awarded by the jury with an honorable mention. They appreciated the spectacular design: 'The conceptually strong intervention throws literally a new sight into the shed and creates new possibilities for the relation to the surroundings' according to the jury.