AJDVIV (Jan de Vylder Inge Vinck) . KOSMOS . Inside Outside Petra Blaisse
The competition task (launched by the City of Antwerp) asked to propose a new identity of the transport infrastructure of Antwerp that can bring together random pieces of bus, train and tram stations in one coherent project. Different sites were provided, united with one challenge.
The city is the port and the port is the city. What the port offers – economy – is also what the port offers here – ecology. Old cranes, dilapidated installations and lost ships are the background to this story. Things that had nothing to do with each other suddenly have a lot to do with each other.
In one movement we find that unity. Not just finding unity but a unity that gives identity. That not only binds everything together but has meaning in the city. In the city its daily life but also in the city its identity.
No two places are the same. But the infrastructure and furniture are recurring. None of the sites was the same in size. But no matter how big or small it is always the same again. Sometimes there is more transport infrastructure. Another time less transport infrastructure. But always the same objects of infrastructure and furniture.
Fragments of old cranes and installations and ships. Enough to bring everything to unity. Well-chosen and cut fragments. As a fragment it is already alienating from its origin yet still recognizable. These fragments become new urban players.
It is circular, without simply being circular. The reuse is strong enough on its own. The material has proven its soundness. Using it for what it was not intended for can be done pretty much without question. Today’s requirements are hardly comparable to what it was meant to serve. But it’s not just reuse per se. It is reusing with a meaning. With a perspective, a story. A recognizable story, a story of this city, often symbolized in gestures that connect history to the present and give a vision of the future.
One material, stable structure. Uniform and therefore easy in maintenance.
Three fragments of different origin and different scale. And three fragments each with a different meaning: POINTER, LINER and SHELTER.
The POINTER – is the smallest cutout of the structure. The fragment that indicates the place. In every place this object occurs. It is purely a shaped point. A shape rising above it. A clear sign that recurs everywhere, making it a point of recognition. Old cranes or machinery or latticework are the source. Precisely carved fragments make what was once latticework into a structure in itself that not only marks a point but also sets out directions. Pointing and connecting at the same time.
The idea of the LINER – GIVING DIRECTION – is to connect further. Physically connecting. Or perhaps also stretching out of the place designated by the POINTER. The LINER is rather horizontal and lower. And develops itself further into possible use. Not based on functionality and ergonomics. But available to lean against. Or to give some lighting that was otherwise missing a chance. Or still be a modest roof where other means proved unsuitable. Installations and pipes and ducts are the starting point here. Not just cutouts but perhaps even reconstructions with a twist
The SHELTER – PROTECTION – is the third player and the biggest and boldest player. The shelter wants to be protective on the one hand and gathering on the other. In separate parts, it still gives protection where it was not expected. Many parts together gather everything into one. Fragments of larger wholes of lost ships or containers sharply cut but also boldly folded or reassembled.
It’s a nice unity: the POINTER and the LINER and the SHELTER together.
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SLIMME SCHAKELS (SMART LINKS)
TEAM: AJDVIV / KOSMOS / Inside Outside
Structural engineers: Bollinger Grohmann
