Bachelor End Project Final Booklet Mila Kovacev 1322680 January 2022 Tutor: Christopher Ho
Maastricht, 1850
Introduction At the edge of the inner city, where the medieval walls used to stand, lies a chaotic composition of industrial buildings. Layered over time, they form a striking collage. Grasping where one building starts and the other ends does not only require intense concentration but is almost impossible, as most of the buildings infill a space that cannot be seen or accessed. This is the starting point of a future development – a campus for the arts. From exclusively private to essentially public, from providing solely ‘efficiency and safety’ (Jevremovic & Vasic, 2012) and producing paper, to producing creative professionals, the contrast between the history of the site and its future function is immense. So, why not start from a blank slate? ‘The tabula rasa of a site cleared for building may convincingly present itself as a clean sheet, but we are never the first, never the last, never without a context’ (Alkemade, Iersel, Minkjan, & Ouburg, 2020). Dismissing the existing qualities as irrelevant doesn’t only seem naïve, it is also apathetic to ‘the rich source of inspiration’ (Alkemade, Iersel, Minkjan, & Ouburg, 2020) that the existing situation carries. This brings us to the research question: How can the hidden beauty in this accidentally admirable architecture be preserved, and experienced in its authenticity, even after its purpose has changed? How do the new buildings juxtapose the old respectfully?
Current Situation on the Sappi terrein
Current Situation on the ‘square’ with the existing tank
Small Open-Air Theatre This first assignment acts as a pilot project for the rest of the project. Reflecting on the research question, an existing tank on the plot is converted into an open-air theatre. By elevating the existing structure both physically, and in terms of its purpose, the open-air theatre foreshadows the future of the plot. As people approach this structure, they get a taste for what’s to come a careful approach in tackling the existing.
Floor plan of the Small Open-Air Theatre
Scale 1:100
North-South Section of the Small Op
pen-Air Theatre
Scale 1:100
East-West Section of the Small Open-Air Theatre
Scale 1:100
Scale model of the Small Open-Air Theatre
Keeping/Removing To accommodate circulation space, eradication is inevitable. Doing this in a careful manner provides the opportunity to pronounce specific architectural elements, resulting in ‘elimination that enriches’ (Alkemade, Iersel, Minkjan, & Ouburg, 2020). Conscious decisions need to be made to achieve both preservation of the old and provide a high-quality space that corresponds to the future of the plot. Analysis of the different buildings and qualities they may have is done as meticulously as possible, looking at each window and every brick for signs of relevance – relevance to the paper factory that once operated within these structures. The large scale of the exposed structures, markings on the pavement, special doors and lifts all add to the atmosphere and are kept.
Keeping/Removing Simultaneously, spatial analysis of existing squares within the city of Maastricht that have proven resistant over time in their spatial qualities, has been conducted. The avoidance of linear streets running through the central axis of a square, allows for exploration of the square through organic movement. Approaching a square from the edge, encourages interaction with the public space, and this is a favourable component on the campus – where people should be encouraged to meet, socialize, and relax in the communal areas.
Most of the existing volumes are kept, including their facades. This works in favor of the autenthiticity aimed for at the start of the project. In other cases, only the structure is kept, assuming a healthy one that could last many more years. Otherwise, the buildings that are demolished, are done so in a careful way. This means that many of the materials, such as windows, bricks and metal elements can be reused in the plot. This circular approach is the main sustainability point in the project, which alsp supports the argument for the ‘Tabula Scripta’ approach on dealing with the exisitng.
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Axonometric diagram of the Masterplan
Masterplan
The Conse
Conservatorium cylindrical volumes
Conservatorium classro
ervatorium
ooms and study spaces
Conservatorium practice rooms
Ground Floor
1:200
First Floor
1:200
Second Floor
1:200
Third Floor
1:200
North Elevation
1:200
East Elevation
1:200
South Elevation
1:200
West Elevation
1:200
Adding To respect the past, the new volumes should not be camouflaged by imitating the old structures - age cannot be faked due to the element of time. The existing structures may present beauty through their pureness, but they are ‘aesthetic as result, never as cause’ (Alkemade, Iersel, Minkjan, & Ouburg, 2020). Thus recreating aged industrial architecture for aesthetic purposes, would be mocking the very essence of their existence. Through the contrast between new and old, the existing buildings are given a chance to stand out, as their details become more visible. The sense of transformation through time caters towards an enriched atmosphere. The roughness of the old bricks and the smoothness of the new volumes is just one of the ways in which the two distant realities are superimposed.
Close-up Photos of the 1:100 scale model
Interior Render - showing the atrium
Exterior render of t
the Conservatorium
Conclusion By identifying these key elements, the beauty of the raw industrial architecture can be preserved. By careful observation of what exactly evokes the past life of the paper factory, these elements can not only be kept, but also highlighted. The emphasis on these qualities is achieved through two main approaches: elimination of what is deemed extraneous, and by creating a stark contrast between the old and the new buildings. However, in his book: On Altering Architecture, Fred Scott questions this need for conservation. Perhaps it is to ‘try to keep hold of something…a response to the general anxiety that not all will be lost by the passage of time… to keep the existing occupied and significant’ (Scott, 2008). The existing does not only make the previous designers, architects, makers, etc. significant and thus urges living architects to choose conservation, in order to one day be respected themselves, but it may simply be the arrogance one must have to believe that all the people involved prior are easily preceded or less important than the individual themselves. To further develop the research, a deeper look into the arguments against conservation and preservation would be intriguing.
References Alkemade, F., Iersel, M. v., Minkjan, M., & Ouburg, J. (2020). Rewriting Architecture - 10+1 Actions. Amsterdam: Valiz. Jevremovic, L., & Vasic, M. (2012). Aesthetics of Industrial Architecture in the Context of Industrial Building Conversion. IV INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM FOR STUDENTS OF DOCTORAL STUDIES IN THE FIELDS OF CIVIL ENGINEERING, ARCHITECTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION. Nis: PhIDAC. Scott, F. (2008). On Altering Architecture. Oxford: Routledge.