Public Debate, Public Interior, Circular Economy – Forms of Exchange: Approaching the Reconversion of an Iconic 1966 Office Tower in Brussels
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Tomas Ooms
Abstract
- In a late Modernist gesture, the Dutch Philips Company constructed in 1966 its headquarters in the historical center of Brussels. Two entire and densely populated city blocks were demolished. A dissociation and discontinuity of the urban tissue was the consequence. The project, a rationally designed tower on a three-story-tall plinth, was to be the inner-city “touchdown” of an oversized real estate development. Currently the Brouckère Tower (or Philips Tower) is being converted from a monofunctional, single-tenant, and stand-alone urban object into a multitenant office environment with an emphasis on conviviality, publicness, and “spatial engagement.” The project is a conversion in three different ways: • From a late Modernist mutilation of the historical urban tissue to an updated Brutalist modernism reinserted in the ideal of the organically evolving European City. • Second, from a dissociated edifice to an engaging urban space exchanger between the central boulevards and the area of the Saint- Cathérine Church. And between the plinth levels, the urban platforms and the newly created winter garden on the eighteenth floor. • And eventually, from a closed and hermetic strange body (Fremdkörper) to a contributor of publicness through interlacing the interior with the public realm, transforming it into a public interior and a civic edifice. The article will share some conclusions relating to design processes in the context of circularity and BIM and regarding the public-private dichotomy in private real estate.
Abstract
- In a late Modernist gesture, the Dutch Philips Company constructed in 1966 its headquarters in the historical center of Brussels. Two entire and densely populated city blocks were demolished. A dissociation and discontinuity of the urban tissue was the consequence. The project, a rationally designed tower on a three-story-tall plinth, was to be the inner-city “touchdown” of an oversized real estate development. Currently the Brouckère Tower (or Philips Tower) is being converted from a monofunctional, single-tenant, and stand-alone urban object into a multitenant office environment with an emphasis on conviviality, publicness, and “spatial engagement.” The project is a conversion in three different ways: • From a late Modernist mutilation of the historical urban tissue to an updated Brutalist modernism reinserted in the ideal of the organically evolving European City. • Second, from a dissociated edifice to an engaging urban space exchanger between the central boulevards and the area of the Saint- Cathérine Church. And between the plinth levels, the urban platforms and the newly created winter garden on the eighteenth floor. • And eventually, from a closed and hermetic strange body (Fremdkörper) to a contributor of publicness through interlacing the interior with the public realm, transforming it into a public interior and a civic edifice. The article will share some conclusions relating to design processes in the context of circularity and BIM and regarding the public-private dichotomy in private real estate.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter 1
- Contents 4
- Preface 9
- Introduction 11
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1. Digitalization and Robotics
- Paradigm Reversal – Connectionist Technologies for Linear Environments 21
- Individualizing Production with DIANA: A Dynamic and Interactive Robotic Assistant for Novel Applications 37
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1.1 Digital Timber Construction
- The Gravitational Pavilion: Simplified Node Complexity 45
- Fibrous Joints for Lightweight Segmented Timber Shells 53
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1.2 Robotics in Timber Construction
- Towards Distributed In Situ Robotic Timber Construction 67
- Cooperative Robotic Fabrication of Timber Dowel Assemblies 77
- Bending-Active Lamination of Robotically Fabricated Timber Elements 89
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2. Timber Construction
- Recycling of Cross-Laminated Timber Production Waste 101
- Textile Architecture for Wood Construction 113
- Acetylated Beech in Structural Timber Constructions 123
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3. Architectural Practice and Research
- Developing Research Cultures in Architecture 135
- Public Debate, Public Interior, Circular Economy – Forms of Exchange: Approaching the Reconversion of an Iconic 1966 Office Tower in Brussels 143
- Making Architecture Public: The Architecture Exhibition – An Environment for a Radical Redesign of the Discipline? 153
- Grounding Associative Geometry: From Universal Style toward Specific Form 161
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4. Design Methods
- Why Evidence-Based Methods Are Useful for Architectural and Urban Design 173
- Architecture as Science of Structures 183
- Dexterity-Controlled Design Procedures 193
- Werkstücke – Making Objects into Houses: Understanding by the Way of the Hands in Design Teaching 205
- Biorealism in the Settlement Architecture of Richard Neutra 213
- Exploring Chinese Scholar Gardens as a Paradigm of Lifestyle Landscape Architecture 223
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5. Sustainability
- Designing Natural Buildings 237
- Dye-Sensitized Solar Concrete 247
- Form-Finding of the ParaKnot3D’s Gridshell with Equal Line Length Rods 255
- Botanical Concrete: Novel Composites for Urban Greening 265
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6. Architectural Space
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6.1 Perception and Visualization
- The Role of Expertise in the Perception of Architectural Space 279
- Does Space Matter? A Cross-Disciplinary Investigation upon Spatial Abilities of Architects 289
- Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality: New Tools for Architectural Visualization and Design 301
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6.2 Human Body
- Embodied Emotions: A Methodology for Experiments in Architecture and Corporeality 313
- Reciprocity and Interaction 321
- Move to Design, Design to Move 331
- Biographies 341
- Index of Authors 372
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter 1
- Contents 4
- Preface 9
- Introduction 11
-
1. Digitalization and Robotics
- Paradigm Reversal – Connectionist Technologies for Linear Environments 21
- Individualizing Production with DIANA: A Dynamic and Interactive Robotic Assistant for Novel Applications 37
-
1.1 Digital Timber Construction
- The Gravitational Pavilion: Simplified Node Complexity 45
- Fibrous Joints for Lightweight Segmented Timber Shells 53
-
1.2 Robotics in Timber Construction
- Towards Distributed In Situ Robotic Timber Construction 67
- Cooperative Robotic Fabrication of Timber Dowel Assemblies 77
- Bending-Active Lamination of Robotically Fabricated Timber Elements 89
-
2. Timber Construction
- Recycling of Cross-Laminated Timber Production Waste 101
- Textile Architecture for Wood Construction 113
- Acetylated Beech in Structural Timber Constructions 123
-
3. Architectural Practice and Research
- Developing Research Cultures in Architecture 135
- Public Debate, Public Interior, Circular Economy – Forms of Exchange: Approaching the Reconversion of an Iconic 1966 Office Tower in Brussels 143
- Making Architecture Public: The Architecture Exhibition – An Environment for a Radical Redesign of the Discipline? 153
- Grounding Associative Geometry: From Universal Style toward Specific Form 161
-
4. Design Methods
- Why Evidence-Based Methods Are Useful for Architectural and Urban Design 173
- Architecture as Science of Structures 183
- Dexterity-Controlled Design Procedures 193
- Werkstücke – Making Objects into Houses: Understanding by the Way of the Hands in Design Teaching 205
- Biorealism in the Settlement Architecture of Richard Neutra 213
- Exploring Chinese Scholar Gardens as a Paradigm of Lifestyle Landscape Architecture 223
-
5. Sustainability
- Designing Natural Buildings 237
- Dye-Sensitized Solar Concrete 247
- Form-Finding of the ParaKnot3D’s Gridshell with Equal Line Length Rods 255
- Botanical Concrete: Novel Composites for Urban Greening 265
-
6. Architectural Space
-
6.1 Perception and Visualization
- The Role of Expertise in the Perception of Architectural Space 279
- Does Space Matter? A Cross-Disciplinary Investigation upon Spatial Abilities of Architects 289
- Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality: New Tools for Architectural Visualization and Design 301
-
6.2 Human Body
- Embodied Emotions: A Methodology for Experiments in Architecture and Corporeality 313
- Reciprocity and Interaction 321
- Move to Design, Design to Move 331
- Biographies 341
- Index of Authors 372
