b

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d

c

a

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Simply imagining the effects the historic fort on Manhattan has had on its direct surroundings and the entire world is a mind boggling exer-cise. One can only find inspiration in how a single edifice has contrib-uted to something as rich, diverse, and constantly self-reinventing as New York.

The Buiksloterham needs its own, central space of socio- economic in-teraction. It needs a concentrated sustainable centre that ties people to the north bank of the IJ. It needs to offer a program so rich and so enticing, that it will woo people into making a home on this promising piece of land. It needs to convince people of the fact that moving their business to the Buiksloterham will continue to guarantee their liveli-hoods. It will have to offer attractions interesting enough for people from all over the world to visit and enjoy their temporary stay in Am-sterdam. It needs regular events that will make people from all over Amsterdam frequent this new cultural hotspot. And it will need to be flexible enough to maintain the freshness that currently gives such a strong appeal to Amsterdam Noord.

Choosing a program for this location should be the result of a careful analysis. It should take into account the role the program plays for the entire city of Amsterdam and its citizens. Furthermore, the program should be able to spark the catalytic effect that will take the Buiksloter-ham from a promising area to a vibrant part of the city.

Our own analysis resulted in the conviction that any program on the Grasweg should connect to the creative and cultural cluster that is emerging along the IJ. Apart from that, it should be supported by enough collateral business interests to enhance the likely success of the program. These collateral business interests should in itself con-tribute to the diversity and further development of the region. Special attention should be given to creating an environment that enables hu-man interaction around the clock. That will benefit not only the people living in the apartments of the Open Fort, but all people that choose to live in the Buiksloterham area.

We feel we have succeeded in finding the entrepreneurs that are able to realize the program needed in both Frame Publishers and the EMB Hotel Group. The proposed Open Frame takes Amsterdam’s need for a gallery showing contemporary industrial design and architecture and uses it to enable a sustainable economic model supporting a public cul-tural attraction on this new location. In the spirit of the OpenFort400 competition yearly co-curated shows with similar organizations and institutes in New York were welcomed by the people from Frame, and will create a lasting celebration of the connection between the two cit-ies.

In order for an urban catalyst to be effective, it needs a specific and rich basis. It needs to trigger a reaction on the social, the economic

and the structural level. In this perspective, simply mixing living and working seems too simplistic an approach. We need to reinvent what really constitutes a mixed program, and what we expect it to do. The process of urban catalysis requires also specific content and commit-ted agents. The design industry can be a rich catalytic agent able to create a condition of shared interest. It includes a broad range of involved parties, and more importantly, everyone has an opinion about it. It’s a pro-active catalyst. Today the language of (industrial) design is a language spoken around the world. Successful designs form a common denominator in the lives of people from all corners of the world and from all social strata. Design is that place where high culture and low culture meet. It is unabashedly commercial yet, in its best manifestations, it strives to improve our everyday lives.

The Open Frame, celebrates human creativity in the way it is made, used, and shown. It enables inhabitants and guests to explore industri-al design in an immersive, participatory manner. The Open Frame not only shows the end results of the design process in a spectacular spi-ral gallery, it also opens up the creative process of design by allowing guests to visit the studios and offices that are located in the building. The hotel will not adhere to the strict limitations of the star system. More important is that people will be inundated with the design ob-jects curated by the gallery that guests can purchase if they so desire.

cultural centersurban landmarkscreative clustersnew development area

Urban Genesis: from ARC to Open FrameWithin given constraints, and by assimilating existing ideas, a notable new form is sculpted. The Open Frame forms a distinctive counterbalance to the strong presence of the Silodam on the other side of the water.

View CorridorBuiksloterham structural gridIJ frontage (Amsterdam Gate)

Urban PositionsOpen Frame, Grasweg and Silodam in 1:5000

Filling the gapThe Open Frame forms the next link in a chain of (cultural) attractors along the IJ. It provides necessary clustered services and amenities supporting the devel-oping Buiksloterham area.

GRASWEG

DISTELWEG

JOHAN VAN HASSELTKANAAL

TripodThe Open Frame incorporates the Grasweg into its tripod like organization and promotes it to a main avenue for the Buiksloterham.

GRASWEG

JOHAN VAN HASSELTKANAAL

HET IJ

HET IJ

NDSM

FILMMUSEUM

MEDIA PAND NOORD

CENTRAL STATION

MUZIEKGEBOUW

PAKHUIS DE ZWIJGER

SILODAMOPEN FRAME

SILOD

AM

01 amsterdam port - industrial harbour

03 central amsterdam - cosmopolitan waterfront

02 amsterdam noord- green courtyard

03

02

01

a - structural span reduction

b - programmable waterfront

c - continuing the landscape

d - spiraling public lobby

e- event space towards the IJ

design:

Elastik and MAT Studioconsultancy:structure - ABT installation - Huygen Installatie Adviseurslandscape - C. Polito

|

ShoWork

(Showroom-Workshop)

Offices -

- Hotel

- Materials Gallery

Library & Bookshop -

Auditorium

|

Gallery

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- Apartments

- Café & Restaurants

- Small Shops

Outdoor Event Space -

Open Air Stage -

- Water Shuttle

Restaurant & Bar -

- private

- public

programmatic spatial distribution

Spatial System: Opening the frame with a spiral landscapeThe diverse program necessitates an elaborate system of interconnected spaces, which combine functions for overlapping groups of users creating a rewarding spatial experience both in- and outside the building. The internal structure breathes fluidity in the way it blends the public and the private.

ShoWork

(WorkShop-

Showroom)

OfficesHotel

Materials Gallery

Library & Bookshop

Auditorium

Gallery

Apartments

(owned)

Apartments

(rental)

Café & RestaurantsBakery Puccini Daycare Computer Shop

Outdoor Event Space

Open Air Stage

Water Shuttle

Water Park

Restaurant & Bar

locals & inhabitants

commuters & workers

visitors & tourists

apartments

offices, workshops and horeca

public amenities

outdoor program

functions and users

Social Space / Interactional ProgramThe Open Frame hosts a mixed program which stimulates socio-cultural interaction. The building’s design balances use both spatially and temporally, creating an attractive loca-tion around the clock.

Birdseye view from the Noordzee kanaalThe Open Frame is approachable from all sides. Its open form allows for spectacular vistas that create an avenue like approach from the Grasweg to the central courtyard, leading all the way to the promenade on the water.

Towards the Noordzee kanaalThe proximity to the water is emphasized by a landscaped water park that playfully softens the transition from water to land. Temporary mooring spots for small boats form an open invitation to visitors from the water. Arguably the best water view in Amsterdam forms the backdrop for the open air stage.

Birdseye view from Amsterdam Central Station A large urban courtyard is formed through careful integration with all the different components on this location.

ShoWork(WorkShop-Showroom)

Offices

Hotel

Library & Bookshop

Auditorium

Gallery

Apartments (owned)

Apartments (rental)

Shops Outdoor Event Space

Open Air Stage

Water Shuttle

Water Park

Restaurant & Bar

Restaurant & Bar

visiting & meeting

working

living

horeca

Open Frame BlendThe proposed functions blend activities in both time and space

routing

floors

Apartments (owned)

Shops

Restaurant & Bar

Hotel

Offices

Auditorium

Restaurant & Bar

ShoWork(WorkShop-Showroom)

Water Park

Open Air Stage

Outdoor Event Space

Gallery

Library & BookshopApartments (rental)

Interwoven SpiralThe routing purposely interweaves the public and the private

Landscape / Urban PlanOpenness is a central design principle in the Open Frame. It allows for easy access to and from the location from all sides and using diverse means of transportation. The design of the Open Fort gives equal importance to the ap-proach from the Grasweg and the waterfront. The Open Fort merges with its surroundings, and hosts activities both in- and outside, and on all sides of the building. Its openness creates attractive public spaces that enable people to enjoy year round events, food and drinks on a sunny terrace, or solitary contemplation on the wa-terfront. The water park creates an attractive spot for people to stroll and relax. Open vistas guarantee magnifi-cent views from many different vantage points.

0 5 10 20 30 40 50m

Restaurant 250m2

Kitchen

Bakery 80m2

Lobby 175m2

Library / Bookshop 255m2

Materials Collection 160m2

Wardrobe

Reception / Ticket

Restaurant / Bar

Terrace

Auditorium / Terrace

Podium

Water Ramp

Multipurpose Event Ramp

Water Park

Main Entrance

Iris

(Pse

uaco

rusm

ites

aust

ralis

)

Rie

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ites

Aust

ralis

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Iris

(Pse

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aust

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Rie

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ragm

ites

Aust

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)

GRASWEG

JOHAN VAN HASSELTKANAAL

HET IJ

HOTEL APARTMENTS RESTAURANT / BAR WATER PARK LIBRARY / BOOKSHOP SHOWORK OFFICES AUDITORIUM OPEN AIR STAGE

-0.40NAP

-0.40NAP

+0.90NAP

+4.00NAP

+4.00NAP

+0.90NAP

+0.90NAP

+1.30NAP

0 5 10 20 30 40 50m

0 5 10 20 30 40 50m

0 5 10 20 30 40 50m

Framed ViewThe Open Frame creates a majestic square that invites human interaction. The building itself morphs into an open air stage that lures people to outdoor events. Similarities to PS1’s outdoor program in New York come to mind. While the square lends itself to an Amsterdam equivalent of the Young Architects Program, the open air stage seems made for something like the successful Warm Up musical series. Regular high profile events like this will keep the Open Frame attractive for repeat visits, and will make the Buiksloterham a go-to-area in Amsterdam.

Spiraling InteriorThe central spiraling ramp forms the centerpiece of the entire structure. It functions as the lung of the building, enabling passive cooling and heating, and it forms the heart of the Open Frame’s social interaction.

In this main exhibition space the exhibited pieces will struggle with the magnificent view for the visitor’s atten-tion. Multi-functional splitlevel platforms overlook the spiral gallery.

Cross SectionOffices and studios, all have a strong connection to the terraces and water park. The combination of working and living is enhanced by the possibility to briefly forget practical concerns when stroll-ing along the waterside. The horizontal cascading floors connect the spiraling collective spaces with privately owned compartments.The multipurpose spiral brings together all users of the building, it spatially links the diverse exponents of the Open frame’s program, both horizontally and vertically.

Floorplan - Level -1

Floorplan - Level 4

Floorplan - Level 9

Perm

anen

t Sho

wro

om 1

200m

2

Apa

rtmen

ts 6

85m

2

Tem

pora

ry S

how

room

700

m2

Caf

é - 1

18m

2

Bio

-Foo

d S

hop

170m

2

Wor

ksho

p 21

5m2

Exh

ibiti

on /

Aud

itoriu

m 5

17m

2E

xhib

ition

/ A

udito

rium

Stu

dio

80m

2

Offi

ce 3

30m

2

Hot

el 9

00m

2

Aud

itoriu

m

Offi

ces

615

m2

Terr

ace

230

m2

Office

Auditorium

Office

Atellier

Showroom

Office

Gallery

Multipurpose Lobby

Showroom / Workshop

Gallery

Office

Hotel

Hotel

Library / Materials Collection

Water Park, Terrace, Restaurant, Showrroom, Workshop

Parking