Born in Heerlen, The Netherlands, 1955
Education: Technical University, Eindhoven, 1983
Selected projects: Academy of Arts and Architecture, Maastricht, The
Netherlands, 198993; AZL Pension Fund headquarters, Heerlen, The Netherlands,
199095; Police Station, Vaals, The Netherlands, 199395
In our era the world seems to become increasingly more immaterial; because of
this the relationship with the object is changing. Our perception has been
changed by the way electronics play an important role in our daily life, and
this undeniably influenced our way of thinking. Ours is a global age in which
the world seems to have become an image.
The grid and zoning codes of Manhattan are rigid, but the vitality of its
culture is maintained. Any application of mathematics to our view of the world
brings with it the challenge of the grid.
The history of MoMA is shown literally by the development of the site and the
contributions by different authors. It is this assemblage of different
impressions transforming into a new idea that Paul Valéry based his
thoughts upon when he wrote about the combination of seemingly random
impressions into an new reality. It is not only the juxtaposition of different
programmatical devices and architects' handwritings in the building we are
talking about, but it could also be a strategy to show art.
Whereas modern architecture is primarily an architecture of the hygienic, the
pure, the unblemished, and the imperturbable, we, on the other hand, accept
imperfection, noise, and disorder as essential elements of the processes of
modern technology. Our ideas are not upset but (quite the reverse) are
stimulated by collisions with information and concepts; these are interpretable
not simply as opposition but also as an accelerating or a condensing of our
ideas.
At present, most architecture does nothing other than attract and titillate its
spectators in every way possible. It tries to create the most powerful image at
the most conducive place. This project breaks with the code of imagery so that,
instead of using architecture to endear a place to the public, people are
relieved of their obligation to respond to that architecture.
The double-high entrance hall, connecting 53rd and 54th streets, can be seen as
a transitional space; it is a space to slow down. One could enter the complex
and leave quickly, yet pass slowly so as to be able to make one's choice where
to go.
MoMA is an urban museum; it is a place to meet people and to study art. The
entrance hall is connected to a café, bookshop, and design shop, and
education center. In the lobby one experiences the galleries already through
the structural shaft through which light from the very top is penetrating in
the complex. The four theaters are situated directly after ticket control,
where the theater lobby is a void connecting 53rd Street with the sculpture
garden. From the main public lobby, ramps bring people down to the temporary
exhibition spaces and up to the different collection galleries.
The galleries are positioned between the public entrance area and the office
towers, with their roof garden for the 600 employees. It is the structural
voids between the towers that allow filtered natural light to enter the
galleries and continue down to the lobby. These voids visually connect the
floors vertically and create an atmosphere of intimacy. These voids are
sometimes bridged and reading rooms are positioned in them.
The different proposals are dealing with the issue of circulation through the
void. An opening in the skin of the city allows art, employees, and visitors to
be brought in and encouraged to construct their own itineraries as they move
from site to site within the complex. Public circulation, staff, scholars, and
art are not anonymous; all these form part of the life of the Museum and the
city of Manhattan, the life that takes place between dream and reality.
Project Credits
Wiel Arets; Dominic Papa, Henrik Vuust, Ivo Daniels, Bettina Kraus, Janneke
Wessels, Jeroen Storm, Martine Nederend.
These works have been selected from a larger collection of drawings that were
submitted for the charette. In addition, the architect's statement has been
abbreviated.
Whereas modern architecture is primarily an architecture of the hygienic, the pure, the unblemished, and the imperturbable, we, on the other hand, accept imperfection, noise, and disorder as essential elements of the processes of modern technology. Our ideas are not upset but (quite the reverse) are stimulated by collisions with information and concepts; these are interpretable not simply as opposition but also as an accelerating or a condensing of our ideas.
The galleries are positioned between the public entrance area and the office towers, with their roof garden for the 600 employees. It is the structural voids between the towers that allow filtered natural light to enter the galleries and continue down to the lobby. These voids visually connect the floors vertically and create an atmosphere of intimacy. These voids are sometimes bridged and reading rooms are positioned in them.
