MVRDV turn traditional buildings inside out for green-lit Zaanstad Cultural Cluster
MVRDV’s design for a cultural hub in Zaandstad, Holland, featuring a concert hall, cinema, arts space, dance studio, library and architecture centre, has been given the green light by the municipality.
The project, called The Cultural Cluster, can now be pushed forwards into the next stage of design.
The Dutch architects have completed the preliminary design phase, which visualises a raised cubic volume with variously coloured silhouettes of traditional Zaan houses carved into the exterior walls.
The largest of these shapes, called the Zaan Living Room, will provide an entranceway and a central space for all the building's programmatic elements, connected directly to the square in front of the city’s hall.
Construction is set to begin by the end of 2017, and will take two years to complete.
The Cultural Cluster will form the final piece of a masterplan by architect Sjoerd Soeters to add more local character to the area, which is famous for its traditional windmills.
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