NIO architecten, Profile of the Dutch architecture firm NIO architecten
NIO architecten, Profile of the Dutch architecture firm NIO architecten
One can easily say that, in spite of the Delta works, the power and force of the water have only increased in theNetherlands. It has mainly adjusted its tactics. Instead of brute force, she now throws in all her charms and is slowly finding her way to areas far outside the polders, to the highest and driest places in the country. Following the slogan of ‘living by the water’ she takes great pleasure in flowing elegantly into new residential areas and is starting to seem unstoppable. This is also the case for Den Bosch, in the new residential area of De Grote Wielen, where waterways were built before roads.
With every house-building assignment, it is the art to escape the standard plans that are in the top drawers of estate agents and developers in a relaxed manner. That applies especially to this particular assignment in the ‘Tussen de Vaarten’ area in Almere, where urban developers have come up with a lingering block of houses of 400 metres long on the ‘Hoge Vaart’, consisting of 119 apartments with walkways on the northeast side to open them up.
The “Centro per l’arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci” was opened in 1988 and donated to the city of Prato by Enrico Pecci, in memory of his son who died at an early age. The museum is situated on the periphery of Prato, near the exit of the A11 highway, a strategic spot where, from the first floor, you can see the skyline of Florence, the city where tourism and ancient culture reign. On this spot however, two opposites dominate: (textile) industry and modern art. The art centre is one of the few museums in Italy that is devoted to modern art and furthermore, that possesses a superb collection which, for lack of exhibition space, is stored in various depots. To be able to display the invisible works of art it was decided to double the exhibition space and to solve two important problems with the new construction.
We want Holland to become acquainted with the Fire Emperor, a new holding of markets that has taken the shape of a building. The Fire Emperor will be the pivot of public life. No-one can escape from this voracious building that day and night devours anything that comes near: innocent tourists and experienced gluttons, pale potatoes and fresh coriander, tame pigeons and live squid, raunchy market stalls and exclusive restaurants, worn-out musicians and erotic services, the rotten smell of durians and the faded perfumes of waitresses. Everything is being digested, pushed along and shovelled out again, but not before it has been substantially reshaped under high pressure. Because it is the new non-stop market hall that houses in the Fire Emperor. Everybody has something to look for here, and everybody and everything is prepared to defy the heat of the kitchen in the Fire Emperor. This is where the city boils and where people travel along on the vapours of exotic dishes.
The grass and marshland of the Botshol is a nature reserve and a unique habitat for unusual plants (wild orchids, rare marsh plants, cotton grass, holly-leaved naiad, stonewort, bog spurge) and birds (the buzzard, the harrier, the cormorant, the bittern, the red-crested pochard, the spoonbill). It is situated – a bit hidden – as an oasis in the midst of the Randstad. It is obvious that in the Botshol cannot be built, but also in the surrounding area of De Ronde Venen there are restrictions to new housing development or partial renewal of existing farms. This is why a lot stays the same. It is the art to create something here that answers the current wishes and demands of the inhabitants and at the same time fits the new plans with nature (the direct surroundings of the Botshol have been designated in 2000 as nature development area, as a consequence, the agricultural function slowly disappears to make room for wet marsh nature).
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