Download - The Market Hall (De Markthal) Rotterdam by MVRDV · The Market Hall (De Markthal) Rotterdam by MVRDV article for online Rotterdam magazine VersBeton.nl in collaboration with rotterdam‐woont.nl

TheMarketHall(DeMarkthal)RotterdambyMVRDVarticleforonlineRotterdammagazineVersBeton.nlincollaborationwithrotterdam‐woont.nl

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Text:LucasvanZuijlen/FransHooykaas(English)images:MVRDV/Provast/Rotterdamarchive

translationinSpanish:JuanAlonso(www.suju.nl)date:15June2014

AnewiconintheheartofRotterdamTheRotterdamMarketHallisalreadybeforethecompletionaninternationalhit.Itisafreshnewicon in the historic heart of the city. The building is placed 200 meters parallel to the latemedievalLawrenceChurchandstandsalsoattheformerbanksoftheRiverRotte.Thisriverwasfilledupinthelate19thcenturyanddivertedforthebenefitoftherail linkacrosstheriver.Bytunnelingthetrainrouteinthe90softhe20thcenturyanoblongsquarehasbeenformedwheretwiceaweektheoutdoorfoodmarkettakesplace.BecauseofitspublicfunctionthenewMarketHallisthecentrepieceoftheLaurensquarterthatafter1945iscrammedwithalltypesofarchitecture.Apartfromjustafewmoreemptylots,theMarketHall isthecopestoneofnewinfill’softhecitycentre,bombed in1940.ItisexactlythelocationofthefirstsettlementsofRotterdaminthe13thcentury.

The Market Hall is an easilyunderstandable building. Partly due tothe simple form; half a hollow tubewithaheightof45metersandpartlytothe clear separation of functions; anindoorfoodmarketwhichiscoveredbyaconstructionwithapartments.Underthebuildingisalargecarpark.The hall is covered by constructionsthat bow to each other with luxurypenthouses in the roof.Theproperties

areaccessibleviathreeentrancesontheoutsideofbothbowlegs.Half theapartmentshaveaviewon the indoormarket throughawell‐insulatedwindow.Themarket takesplace7daysaweekinthemainhall.Permanentstallsareinpreparation.Thegroundfloorandfirstflooronbothsidesofthehallaredesignedforpermanentshopsandrestaurants;terracescanplacedontheoutsideofthebuildingfacingthestreets.Thefrontandrear of the building resemble huge horseshoes with in between a large stressed glass front.Throughtheglass façadeahugeworkofartplacedonacousticpanelsagainstthecurvedroofcanbeseen,whichreflectsthefunctionofthehall.ThiscolourfulimageofartistArnoCoenenisa waterfall of huge photos of fruits, vegetables, flowers and some animals like fish andbutterflies.“Ifyouwouldlieonyourbackonthemarketfloorisasifyouarelyinginthegrasswith light from the sun fromabove”, says the artist. For the passer‐by the image reflects theexpectedhighqualityfreshfoodthatwillbesoldinthehall.TheMarketHallinRotterdamThe newMarket Hall is a statement of the Rotterdam firmMVRDV. It is a contemporaryinterpretationofthe18thcenturypassage;antypeofcoveredshoppinggalleries,originated inParis; streets with storefronts on both sides. These were inspired by oriental bazaars andSouthernEuropeanmarkets filledwithstalls fortemporaryentrepreneurs.TheFrench'galeriesmarchandes'werethemeetingplaceforthebeaumonde,theplaceintowntoacquireclothing


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andfoodinpermanentluxuriousshops,relaxinacasinoortomeetpeopleinagrandcafé.Thesearcadesweresocialmeetingplaces,andinthe19thcenturypopularinWesternEurope,followedinbigcitieslikeBrusselsandLondon.Thearcadeswerebuilthigherovertimewithofficefloorsordwellingsabovetheshopsandwithatransparentroof.The first arcade in the Netherlands has been built in 1879 inRotterdambyarchitectJ.vanWijk.Three years later, he built the still existing arcade opposite theBinnenhof in The Hague, with shops and upstairs apartmentsalongthreeinteriorstreetsmeetingeachotherinthemiddle.TheRotterdam Passage is almost completely destroyed during thebombingin1940andwassituatedonthesiteofthecurrentC&Abuilding , parallel to the Koopgoot (‘shopping gutter’) from theCoolsingelalmosttotheSchielandshuis.Besidesshopstherehasbeenabathhouseandahotelwith42rooms.Thefirsttothethirdfloorsituatedapartmentsandmaisonetteswhich‐contrarytotheMarketHall‐hadaccessfromtheinteriorstreet.Until1948intheurban reconstruction plan for the city took rebuilding a similararcadeintoaccount.Nearly65yearslater,itisthereinarenewedformandnotfarfromitsoriginallocation. PassageRotterdam1900 DevelopmentandDesignMarketHallThe ideas for the development of theMarketHall stem frombringing togetherneeds.On theonehandtherewastheneedtoexpandthemarketwithacoveredhall.OntheotherhandthegovernmentofRotterdamencouragesthebuildingofluxuriousdwellingsinthecitycentre.RealEstate developer Provastworked togetherwith architecture firmMVRDV to develop ideas forthecombinationinthisprimelocation,rightnexttothepublictransporthubstationBlaak.

The range of approximately 20 differentapartment types, location, and 1200 parkingplaceswill definitely improve the vibrancy in thecitycentre. Residents and business owners willdeliberately choose a place in this complex,meeting all current comfort requirements. Byproper measures in the façade the apartmentswillnothavenoiseandodoursnuisancefromthemarket.Forprospectiveresidentsthereisagreatdiversity of housing types, from open‐plan loftapartmentstoduplexeswithseveralbedrooms.

Thepenthousesontheroofareaccessiblebyliftandhavethefrontdooronthefloorbelow.Thepenthouse has space reserved for a private elevator. This solution made it possible to avoidvisibleliftshaftsontheroof.ForchiefdesignerWinyMaas,educatedasa landscapearchitect,thebuildingislikealocalbigfold in the pavement. The cladding of the building is therefore grey coloured natural stone,similar to the surrounding street pavement. The long façades of the building are therefore ingreatcontrasttothecolourful,vibrantpublicmall.Becauseofthechosenformofthebuilding


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continuous technical and spatial solutions had to be devised by the architect; 'Technics followform’.DirectedbyMVRDV,theprocessiscarriedouttothelastdetail.MVRDVwilluntilandafterthecompletionworktoguardtheprinciplesofthedesign.Bynowthebuyersandtenantswillfindtheirplaceinthebuilding,developerProvastwillfoundTheMarketHallRotterdamPLC.ThisPLCwillmanageandguardthedesignofthebuildingandwillact forusersandresidentsastheirrepresentativefordesiredchanges.FormajorchangesMVRDVwillmanage the control. The inside of the apartments is of course free to be organized by the

dwellers.Approximately100permanentsteelfreshfoodstallsinthe main hall are designed by the architect in threetypes. Stall tenants can opt for advertising, plants oreven a roof terrace. A tenant may combine severalstalls. The stalls in theMarket Hall will generally sellproducts that do not competewith the current openairmarketandwillappealtoadifferentpublic.

TheexpeditionlayerThesimpleshapeofthebuilding,asitmanifestsitselfaboveground,hasbeenmadepossiblebythe quality of the logistics of the functions ofthebuildingon the firstbasement level. This isthetoplayeroffourundergroundparkinglevelswitharampaccesstotheWestblaak.Shopsandstallscanbesuppliedthroughaseparateserviceroad where shops have their own storage orrefrigeration rooms. This ‘expedition layer’locatesalsothestorages,bicycleparkingandpermanentparkingfortheresidents.Inthemiddleofthehall isalargevoidtolevel‐4withescalators.Visitorsarrivingbycarinthebuildingwillbeconductedonallparkinglevelstowardsthelightofthevoid.Forvisitorsenteringthehallthroughthecentralstaircaseitisawarm,colourfulandaromaticwelcomeintothecity.Alongtheescalatorsobjectsfromrecentexcavations, foundonthishistoricsite inthecity,willbeexhibited.UrbancontextTheMarketHallisatributetothepastandrecentcityhistory.Thebasicformofthebuildingfitsinbetweenboththeiconicbuildingsoftheurbanrenewalperiod,thelibraryandtheCubehouses(thefirst‘urbanroof’inRotterdam),andbetweenthemorerecent,distinctivearchitecture,forexampletheBlaakstation,theStatendam,theHofdameandslightlyfurtherawaytheRedApple.If thepublic space in the immediatevicinityof thenewMarketHallwillbenefit from itsauraremainstobeseen.Onthemarketside,therecognizablefrontfaçadeisvisiblefromafar.Onthewestside,thebackside,thesimilarwall istooclosetothesurroundingbuildingstoexperiencethefaçadeasawhole.


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Theapartmentsonthesouthsidestandsintheshadowofthe(alsobyProvastdeveloped)officebuilding Blaak 31‐ which also blocks the view to the south. On the north side, between theMarketHallandtheHoogstraat,abuildingwillbeconstructedthatthatisevenhigherthantheMarketHall.Thisproject,theRottaNova,willblocktheviewoftheMarketHallfromthebustlingHoogstraat.Howtheconnectiontothesurroundingstreetsandpublicspaces inthefuturewilldevelop isstillachallenge.Forexample,ascenicroutetotheHoogstraatorVlasmarktcanbedevelopedalongthewater.ThiswaterisactuallyarearrangementoftheRiverRotte.

Withaheightof45meters,theMarketHall isanimpressivespectaclethatwill takehisspaceandplace intheareaoverthenearfuture.DuringtheinitialdesignsessionsWinyMaascreated the image in his teamof architects of a 'cathedral'.This ambition is striking, the result successful, even if thisbuildingstandsonthreesidestightinitssurroundings.

MVRDVThestrengthofthemethodofthearchitects is to involveconsultants inanearlyphaseofthedesign. For example civil engineerswere invited during the first sketching sessions to consultabout shape in relation to layout. A second successful strategy is the communication in themediaaboutthedesign.Carefullytantalizingimages,resemblingreality,havebeenbroughtout.Now,asthebuildingisgettingfinished,thestrikingsimilarityappears.Onenotabledifferenceisthelightingwhichinthepicturesseemstoshinefromthehall.PerhapsthisistheeffectoftheartworkthatoriginallywastobeexecutedinLEDlighting.ThedesignofacontinuingskylightasinthepredecessorthePassage,shouldgivenaturalandequallightinthehallindaytime.Although realization from concept tocompletiontookalongtime,itlooksasiftheMarketHall has been designed andbuiltwithmuchease.Theresultandthedesignprocessofferperspectivesforthedevelopmentofhybridurbanchallengesin the future. The building is and willremain a clear statement in an urbanstructure with a high diversity of iconsfrom the reconstruction and urbanrenewal period. New projects developed in the immediate vicinity can hardly ignore thepresence of theMarket Hall. The building is a vibrant addition to Rotterdam that will haveinfluenceonthedevelopmentofthecitycentreinthenearfuture.TheMarketHallin2015asoneofthe25projectsRotterdamhousingattheexhibitionpavilionintheMarqBuenosAires.Moreinformationwillbeavailablelaterthisyearonhttp://www.socearq.org/2.0/marqTranslationsinDutchandSpanishonhttp://www.rotterdamwoont.nl/items/view/179/Markthal