deSingel - Art Campus

The new building is located between the motorway,Jan Van Rijswijcklaan, one side of the 8-shaped low-rise building and the slope of the corridor next to the Blue Hall. The new low-rise building, a closed plinth, houses functions designed to ensure the better functioning of deSingel, plus the offices of the Flemish Architecture Institute. The high-rise building, a horizontal slab, rises above both the new and existing low-rise buildings and is structurally independent of them.

This horizontal slab stands out like a beacon on the ring road and enters into competition with Stynen's three towers in the surrounding area: the BP building (now AXA), the Crest Hotel (now Crowne Plaza) and the vertical slab above the halls of deSingel itself. This volume contains rooms for the Conservatory. Between the plinth and the horizontal slab is a transparent box housing public functions. This is connected to the existing corridors of the Blue and Red Halls. This glass slab is also home to a multimedia reading room and a caferestaurant.

The building incorporated a series of stimulating processes into its design. Spacious circulation routes take audiences along the outside of the building. Large areas of glass offer views of the urban landscape and the traffic on the ring-road, thus maintaining contact with the outside world. At the same time the flow of open spaces and unexpected three-dimensional views allow visitors to see the internal workings of the building. This gives the building a dynamic quality. It sets out to elicit wonder, curiosity, a sense of adventure, and anticipation. The Arts Campus is a dynamic climate. Our aim is to capitalise on all the possibilities this new infrastructure has to offer the audience, artists and students. The new building will add 12,000 sq.m.to the campus, 7800 of which is for deSingel and 4200 for the conservatory.