MR: A building should always be able to
everything is strictly determined in the brief,
about thinking very deeply about how you
cater to types of use for which it was not
the amount of square metres and the tight
can answer the question of a client with a
originally intended. De Rozet, for example,
budgets are already set, and everything has
twist or an innovation.
has a lot of surplus space. In these spaces,
a functional necessity. How difficult is it for
you can do whatever you want: you can host
an architect to realize his or her ideals in this
a public debate, have a Ping-Pong match,
context?
Architecture is about more than just filling in the programme in a set amount of square metres.
or maybe even play basketball. Another good example is the Esprit Headoffice by
JB: You have to cheat, as it were: if you know
Bekkering Adams. From a purely functional
all the regulations inside out, you can find
perspective, the stairs in this building are
the margins of what is possible.
too large. At the same time, these stairs form the backbone of the building: they can host
MR: I wouldn’t call it cheating, but rather
fashion shows or exhibitions there, and
tweaking.
the stairs connect the ground floor to the
phenomenon of ‘unnamed space’ in Dutch
So what is then the relationship between
central patio. In other words, these building
building regulations: if there is some space
a design concept, like the one you just
facilitate all kinds of use that transcend the
below a roof or behind a machine that is
mentioned, and an ideal? And can an ideal,
narrow pragmatic corset, giving a lot of
unusable, you can call it unnamed space.
or an ambition, also be a design tool?
freedom to its user. And I think that’s the
But you can also design with the unnamed
crucial difference between a good building
space, which will basically enable you
MR: I think that the design concept is
and a very good building.
to add useful space somewhere in the
the most powerful moment in the design
For
example:
there
is
the
building. You need certain discoveries that
process, in which the ideal is materialized.
JB: Another example: one of the fire
trigger a design. An architect formulates an
It is a difficult word however. In the beaux-
stations we designed has a large hall in
answer to the question of a client that will
arts tradition it was usually called the parti:
which to park vehicles. At the request of
accommodate his wishes. However, this
the crucial sequence of spaces that forms the
the volunteer firefighters, we designed this
does not per definition mean that this answer
essence of the design and makes everything
hall so it can also be used to play sports or
is also what the client expected it to be. A
around it of secondary importance.
have a party. These are the sort of things
good example of this is the Scheepvaart en
that are never specified in the brief, but
Transport College in Rotterdam. The client
JB: On the other hand: you can have a
architecture is about more than just filling
had found a location where they could build
fantastic concept, but if you don’t know how
in the programme in a set amount of square
a school of five storeys high. They expected
to materialize it, you still have nothing. A lot
metres.
that we would build a five-storey school,
of attention is always given to the concept,
but we ended up designing a 60-m tower.
as if it were a sacred principle, but merely
You describe the situation that architecture
This is what they wished, but not what they
having a good concept won’t get you very
currently finds itself in as a difficult one:
expected. Reinterpreting a commission is
far.
15