ARCHITECTURAL STUDIES S T. J O B S V E E M , R O T T E R D A M AR1AD030
Team members Bart Dessens Gosia Gołąbek Shea McGibbon
Contents
Introduction and aim
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Why keep this building? -A history of change 9 10 12 14 16
Then and now Butchered History Alternative Pier, Alternative approach Value of retention?
Character and Quality 20 22 24 26 28 30
Deep, occupied balconies Artistry of detailing Fragments of past Dwelling in history Residents and Privacy User Variation
The Building 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48
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Current Morphology Access and Circulation Historic morphology Sectional adaptation Morphology: Past and Present 1912-2014: Additions and Removals 1912-2014: Functions and Use 1912-1980: Warehouse
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2007- : Loft Apartments
The Dwellings 54 56 58 60 62 64 66
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Typology Matrix Typology 1: Studio Apartment Typology 2: 1 Bedroom apartment Typology 3: Duplex Penthouse Typology 4: Penthouse Privacy within the atrium Service Corridors
Summary and conclusion 70
Summary of findings
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1.
Introduction and aim
Aim:
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To deliver a survey of the socio-spatial patterns of use through photos and sketches; highlighting the growth, change and continuity of the St. Jobsveem Warehouse, Rotterdam.
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2.
Why keep this building? -A history of change
Then and now
Since its construction in 1912, the St. Jobsveem warehouse has undergone significant alterations and change. When made vacant in the 1950’s the building fell into a state of disrepair. In the 1980’s the large silo building was demolished, replaced with an electrical sub-station. In 2007 the regeneration of the building, the restoration of the façades and the reprogramming of the building saw the warehouse transformed into a lively apartment complex. 1 6
THEN AND NOW
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B UTCHERED
HISTORY
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DEEP OCCUPIED BALCONY
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Butchered History
The original design of St Jobsveem featured a large silo, attached to the current building and sharing vertical circulation.
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THEN AND NOW The demolition of this building in the 1980’s made way for a new electrical substation for the area. This process is evidenced in the scarred nature of the former partition wall between the silo and warehouse, and the severe placement of side-windows in the conversion process.
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B UTCHERED
HISTORY
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DEEP OCCUPIED BALCONY
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Alternative Pier, Alternative approach
When considering the alternative options to accommodate dwelling within the port context of Rotterdam the adjoining pier, now referred to as Lloydkwartier, is a fitting example. Instead of retaining the long, mid-rise, existing warehouses, a strategy of demolition and reconstruction was adopted. This allowed a new, domestic, urban fabric to be created along, with several high-rise elements. This comprehensive change does however lack any relation to the port context in which it is situated.
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Value of retention? 9
B UTCHERED
HISTORY
US
St Jobsveem is one of the few original buildings remaining in this area of the port. In order to preserve the memory of this period in Rotterdam’s history its preservation becomes imperative.
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However, preservation of the building as a warehouse makes little sense, therefore the decision was made to change its use from industrial to residential.
DEEP OCCUPIED BALCONY
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ARTISTERY OF DETAIL
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FRAGMENTS OF THE PAST
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3.
Character and Quality
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Deep, occupied balconies
THEN AND NOW
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The dockside elevation of the building, once used for loading and unloading materials as they came and went from RotterUTCHERED HISTORY dam, has now become an energetic display of inhabitation.
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Compared to contemporary space standards the reuse of the loading balconies offer much more external amenity space, which in turn allows occupants to inhabit this space more meaningfully; with larger furniture and planting, giving this once industrial building an enthusiastic domestic quality. 3 8
DEEP OCCUPIED BALC
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ARTISTERY OF DETAIL
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Artistry of detailing
B UTCHERED
HISTOR
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Though originally designed as an industrial building St. Jobsveem is has many well crafted details, Of particular note is the quality of brickwork, the cast concrete lettering adornDEEP OCCUPIED BAL ing the gable-end wall and the plasterwork on the underside of the loading balconies.
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ARTISTERY OF DETA
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FRAGMENTS OF THE 22
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Fragments of the past
DEEP OCCUPIED BALCONY
Though the buildings use has changed many remnants of its former life have been preserved. Examples of cast-iron brackets and fixings previously used to load and unload wares from ships and trains now serve as a reminder of the role of OF DETAIL St. Jobsveem, in this one bustling area ofARTISTERY Rotterdam’s docklands.
FRAGMENTS OF THE PAST 6
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Dwelling in history
EN AND NOW
RESIDENT AND PRIVAC
In order to convert the building several programmatic alterations had to be made to allow residents access to their apartments.
UTCHERED HISTORY
USER VARIATION
The glazed atria are bold incisions into the faรงades of the building, slicing through the structure of the warehouse to create a five storey void in which vertical circulation can be organised. Loading bays have become slide-opeining Juliet balconies. Nevertheless these adaptations are sympathetic to the rhythm and proportions of the existing facade.
EP OCCUPIED BALCONY
DWELLING IN HISTORY
TISTERY OF DETAIL
SUMMARY OF FINDING
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Residents and Privacy
An interesting observation of the dockside balconies is the effect of their projection from the facade. This allows apartments to have full-height slide-opening windows without issues of privacy. It also provides a more urban quality, to the dockside, as it is not overlooked as extensively, allowing non-residents to use this space without the feeling of invasion into a “private” space.
HEN AND NOW
B UTCHERED
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HISTORY
RESIDENT AND PRIVACY
USER VARIATION
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User Variation
THEN AND NOW
B UTCHERED
HISTORY
DEEP OCCUPIED BALCONY
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The incorporation of old shutters and hatches in combination with new double-glazing, designed to replicate the old window frames helps the building to retain its industrial character., RESIDENT AND PRIVACY For the occupant the layering of these fenestration techniques allow multiple adjustments of openings to suit any condition.
USER VARIATION
DWELLING IN HISTORY
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4.
The Building
Current Morphology
The building is a linear volume, 25m deep and 130m long. Currently this consists of 6 floors of double-banked residential apartments, placed above a 5/6m split ground floor level. In total there are 109 apartments within the building. The ground floor contains a mix of public functions (restaurant, office, retail).
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Access and Circulation
The building is accessed through three atria, inserted into the existing warehouse. They change the circulation and define the use of the building. Ground-floor uses are accessible from the street/quayside. Residential dwellings are accessible to residents only through the atria and connecting corridors.
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Historic morphology
Over time the warehouse and context have changed significantly. The maps to the right show the incremental development of the quayside, first with industrial warehouses and harbour functions, and in recent decades with residential redevelopments.
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1910
1938
1912
2011
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Sectional adaptation
The section of the original building was a deep, pragmatic stacking of warehouse floors. To convert the building to a residential use issues of access and daylighting had to be tackled. This is addressed through three large atria, connected to corridors to access the dwellings, but also allowing views through and admitting daylight deep into the plan .
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Morphology: Past and Present
The original morphology consisted of the warehouse, a connecting silo building, timber rooftop skylights, with gantry and rooftop cranes for loading and unloading. The current morphology has been stripped of much of this, however the loading balconies have now been converted to residential external spaces.
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1912
Present 43
1912-2014: Additions and Removals
The loading cranes, rooftop skylights and silo were all removed over time. In the change of use to residential several new features were added. Atria to access and permit daylight, a new roof structure containing penthouses and the conversion of the deep quayside balconies for use as residential amenity space,
Additions Removals
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1912
Present 45
1912-2014: Functions and Use
The silo and warehouse were the only different uses within the existing building. Today there are a multitude of private, collective and public spaces within the building, corresponding with the variety of uses now contained within. (Public restaurants and offices, private apartments and penthouses, and collective atria and circulation spaces.)
Atrium Public Residential Storage Silo Warehouse
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1912
Present 47
1912-1980: Warehouse
The St.Jobsveem Warehouse was originally used for storing wares, salts, pepper and spices. This necessitated large, open floor spaces with substantial structure to support the weight of stored materials. Skylights on the roof permitted light into the upper floor of the building. Gantry cranes on the quayside and on the roof of the building combined with loading balconies to move wares into and out of the building.
http://images.memorix.nl/rce/thumb/1200x1200/4cedc871-6054-a94c-6702-6f4e87cb061b.jpg 48
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2007- : Loft Apartments
To convert the building for residential use several alternations were made. The original roof structure was replaced with a new penthouse floor Atria to access the building and permit additional daylight to the deep plan where created
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Overzicht_van_Sint_Jobsveem_vanaf_dak_scheepvaartcollege_met_zicht_ op_het_verdwenen_dak_-_Rotterdam_-_20380510_-_RCE.jpg http://www.mimoa.eu/projects/Netherlands/Rotterdam/Jobsveem http://www.pietersbouwtechniek.nl/photo/project/51/4/jobsveem_100000.jpg 50
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5.
The Dwellings
Typology Matrix
Converting a large, rationally structured warehouse building creates a perfect opportunity to create both a diverse and flexible range of apartment typologies. The flexibility of the apartment plans is highlighted in the multitude of variations that have been created by residents, with very few apartments completely identical; allowing continuous change by current and future residents. The rational layout of columns produces a systematic yet flexible organisation of both the building and the apartments. This also creates flexibility of spatial character within the apartments, and the possibility to change and reconfigure dwellings over time.
Private uses Public uses
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Typology 1: Studio Apartment
This typology is accessed from a double-loaded corridor. The most common typology within the building the one-bedroom studio, flanking much of the western facade of the building. Extra daylight is brought into the dwelling through the fullheight glazing into the atrium, illuminating the main living spaces and improving the quality of the kitchen/dining area deep within the plan.
boven: Het blad van de eettafel is gemaakt door Piet Hein Eek op een oud Gispen onderstel. rechts: Twee originele fauteuils van W.H. Gispen met nieuwe bekleding. De foto aan de muur is gemaakt in een Belgisch pakhuis en doet sterk denken aan de oude sfeer van het Jobsveem. top: The tabletop was made by Piet Hein Eek on an old Gispen undercarriage. right: Two original W.H. Gispen armchairs with new upholstery. The photo on the wall was taken in a Belgian warehouse and is strongly evocative of the old atmosphere of the Job’s Wharf.
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Typology 2: 1 Bedroom apartment
This typology is accessed from a double-loaded corridor. Rectilinear dwelling with generous eastern aspect. Service core (risers, storage, utility and small toilet) is at entrance, directly into kitchen. Extra balcony space on the western facade crosses and conceals the atrium. Deep balconies allow dwellings to spill out to this external space.
rzien van
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onder: De verhoogde tafel met Boffi barkrukken biedt gasten de gelegenheid om contact te houden met de kok. In de slaapkamer is de stoel ‘Costes’ (1984) van Philippe Starck voor Driade net te zien. bottom: The raised table with Boffi bar stools allow guests to maintain contact with the cook. In the bedroom we catch a glimpse of a ‘Costes’ chair (1984) by Philippe Starck for Driade.
boven: Vanuit de zithoek met loungebank ‘Marcel’ (2003) van Antonio Citterio voor B&B Italia is de entree met leeshoek, de open keuken en de eettafel zichtbaar. De oranje stoel met voetenbank is de ‘Orange Slice’, ontworpen in 1960 door Pierre Paulin voor Artifort. De tafeltjes zijn vintage en komen uit Scandinavië. links: De leren kuipstoel is de ‘Mart MPG’ (2003) van Antonio Citterio voor B&B Italia. Aan de wand een zeefdruk van Henry Pennings. rechts: Aan de eettafel van Piet Hein Eek staan vintage Gispen stoelen, oude Franse werkplaatsstoelen en een Thonet kinderstoel. Op de achtergrond ingelijste affiches van tentoonstellingen uit de jaren zeventig bij de Parijse Galerie Maeght. top: The open kitchen and dining table are visible from the lounge with the ‘Marcel’ sofa (2003) by Antonio Citterio for B&B Italia. The orange chair with footstool is the ‘Orange Slice’, designed in 1960 by Pierre Paulin for Artifort. The small tables are vintage Scandinavian. left: The leather tub chair is ‘Mart MPG’ (2003) by Antonio Citterio for B&B Italia. On the wall is a screen print by Henry Pennings. right: Around the dining table by Piet Hein Eek are vintage Gispen chairs, old French workshop chairs and a Thonet highchair. In the background are framed posters of 1970s’ exhibitions at Galerie Maeght in Paris.
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boven: Bij het raam staan twee fauteuils ‘Grand Confort’ ontworpen door Le Corbusier in 1928 en tegenwoordig geproduceerd door Cassina. De keuken is van Boffi. De achterwand werd geschilderd in turkoois. De wand is 2.4 m hoog en verspringt dan naar een grijs vlak dat doorloopt in het betonnen plafond. links: Op het balkon een ‘Bubble Club’ stoel (2000) van Philippe Starck voor Kartell. top: Next to the window are two ‘Grand Confort’ chairs, designed by Le Corbusier in 1928 and now produced by Cassina. The kitchen is by Boffi. The rear wall is painted turquoise. The wall is 2.4 metres high and is topped with a grey area that fuses with the concrete ceiling. left: On the balcony is a ‘Bubble Club’ chair (2000) by Philippe Starck for Kartell.
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Typology 3: Duplex Penthouse
Duplex penthouses are accessed from double loaded corridor. Service core (risers, storage, utility and small toilet) is at entrance. Entrance into small vestibule, staircase leads to living and sleeping. Deep north facing balcony accessed off living space, shallow, private balcony accessed off bedrooms.
Op de verdieping is een praktische werkruimte ingericht voor de vrouw des huizes met plaats voor alle boeken van het paar. volgende pagina: Het raam bij de eettafel geeft een prachtig uitzicht over Rotterdam met in de verte de Erasmusbrug. On the floor above Beatrijs has a practical workspace with room for all the couple’s books. next page: The window at the dining table offers a great view over Rotterdam with the Erasmus bridge in the distance.
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Typology 4: Penthouse
Penthouse accessed off atrium staircase. Service core (risers, storage, utility space, bike storage and bathroom) is at entrance. Corridors lead visitor past bedrooms to kitchen, or directly to living space Large west-facing external space accessed off living space, shallower private balcony accessed off bedrooms and kitchen
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Privacy within the atrium
The largest potential criticism of the planning of this building is the relationship of apartments to atrium. Though intended to offer increased daylighting the fully glazed elevation of apartments into the atrium is frequently covered and closed with blinds and curtains, This suggests that residents do not appreciate this feature, and perhaps the treatment of the openings should have been more conscientiously considered.
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Service Corridors
Both the atrium and service have austere, utilitarian finishes. Only the existing elements of the building have colour, modelling and texture. All new components have been symbolised in a clean, smooth, minimal fashion. This is in stark contrast to the visual richness of the retained floor structure, with rich tones of natural timber giving character to an otherwise soulless space.
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6.
Summary and conclusion
Summary of findings
Through the analysis of this project several significant points have been observed:
1. The desirability of flexible floor plans 2. A rational, systematic construction permits infinite subdivision and adaptable planning 3. Daylight and privacy issues created have been created by the atrium 4. Various possibilities to re-imagine old monuments 5. Quality residential dwellings can exist within deep floorplans 6. Views and balconies offer new qualities of living within historic building 7. Living spaces are planned to maximise daylight and view 8. Making a statement with the old through designed emphasis, exposing and celebrating the old
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