Three stations in the Belgian landscape. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina
24/02/2021.
[Antwerp] Belgium
metalocus, GONZALO GARCÍA MORENO
metalocus, GONZALO GARCÍA MORENO
The architecture studio Van Belle & Medina was commissioned to design three tram stations in the coastal city of Antwerp, Belgium. The project has just been nominated for the EUMies 2022 Awards.
Each of these stations is located in a different place so different alternatives arise when integrating into the landscape. In addition to housing space for technical installations, all stations are developed through very expressive forms capable of creating a joint urban and landscape narrative between all of them, based on the different ways they have to adapt to their contexts.
Each of these stations is located in a different place so different alternatives arise when integrating into the landscape. In addition to housing space for technical installations, all stations are developed through very expressive forms capable of creating a joint urban and landscape narrative between all of them, based on the different ways they have to adapt to their contexts.
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station. Photograph by Maxime Delvaux
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station. Photograph by Maxime Delvaux
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station. Photograph by Maxime Delvaux
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station. Photograph by Maxime Delvaux
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station. Photograph by Maxime Delvaux
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station. Photograph by Maxime Delvaux
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station. Photograph by Stijn Bollaert
Site plan. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Ground floor plan. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Northeast elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Northwest elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Southeast elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Southwest elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Detail 1. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Detail 2. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Sraatburgbrug Station
Site plan. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
Ground floor plan. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
North elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
East elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
West elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
South elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
A-A' Section. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
Detail 1. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
Detail 2. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Luchtbal Station
Site plan. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
Ground floor plan. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
East elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
North elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
South elevation. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
A-A' Section. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
B-B' Section. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
C-C' Section. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
Detail 1. Traction Stations Brabo 2 Antwerp by Van Belle & Medina. Tjalkstraat Station
Despite the common relationship established through the use of white brick, this does not prevent each of the three stations projected by the Van Belle & Medina studio from developing different solutions to adapt to the urban and landscape context where they are located.
Luchtbal station proposes a circular wall with openings in the form of arches that allow establishing visual relationships with the nature of the park in which it is located. The Tjalkstraat station is located embedded in a hillside and opens three holes inside that serve as a refuge for the user. Finally, the Strasbourg bridge station generates space to rest in height that allows it to be done while observing the surrounding land.
Luchtbal station proposes a circular wall with openings in the form of arches that allow establishing visual relationships with the nature of the park in which it is located. The Tjalkstraat station is located embedded in a hillside and opens three holes inside that serve as a refuge for the user. Finally, the Strasbourg bridge station generates space to rest in height that allows it to be done while observing the surrounding land.
Description of project by Van Belle & Medina
The assignment consists of the design of three tram traction stations and was commissioned by De Lijn, the public transport company of Belgium. The three electrical cabins provide power to the new tram line in the north of Antwerp. The three different locations take part of a larger whole: “Brabo2: the new tram line from Rooseveltplaats Antwerp to Luchtbal and the Eilandje area”.
The three different locations and technical requirements give as a result three different buildings, by making use of every particular setting; in a small park on Noorderlaan in the Luchtbal residential area, under a bridge next to a bus park in Tjalkstraat, and on the cross roads opposite of Zaha Hadid’s Port House.
The particular architecture of every of the three buildings does more than to house technical installations. Their voluptuous brick forms transform them into pavilions, introducing poetry into the different and difficult urban sites. The project contributes to an urban narrative, creating unprecedented views of the landscape, examining what sustainability means and exploring the boundaries of what the architectural discipline stands for.
The stations are designed taking into account the urban and landscape qualities of its context. The symbiosis between site complexity and infrastructure, gives as a result three different objects with three different architectural identities and urban meaning.The pavilions become part of the urban fabric, and their form and expression recreate the dialogue between architecture, infrastructure, and nature. Every building is positioned on the site in order to give enough freedom of use around it, respecting the surrounding landscape elements and including them into the planning organization of the buildings.
The Luchtbal area is part of a green corridor bounded by a constellation of buildings. The station is conceived as a garden pavilion to add structure and quality to the park, creating visual relationships and activating social dynamism. A wall with arched openings marks out a circle in the park which, in a single gesture, contains the cabin, the existing trees and sculpture.
The Tjalkstraat station is located on the slope of the Noorderlaan, and it is conceived like a masonry wall of bricks with three semicircular recesses. This gesture provides an inviting shelter to anyone who is waiting for the tram. The building remembers us to the great care that public infrastructural interventions where designed a century ago.
The Strasbourg Bridge station is located to the east of the new Port House designed by Zaha Hadid, and it is conceived as a place to take rest and lookout to the Port House, the Kattendijkdok, and the Albert Canal. The plan is developed following the trace of the tram loop, incorporating two staircases which lift the visitor to the roof level. Like a small mooring post, the building offers a subtle and not unironic riposte to the dominant architecture of the Port House.
Although the generic concept is to adapt every volume to its specific context and infrastructural requirements, in order to achieve different volumetric results, the relationship established between the three buildings is stablished by its materiality. They are made with the same brick, in a way that they look all to be part of the same family but with different architectonical and urban qualities. This material will be applied in a different and special ways each time, using different masonry bonds, details and tectonics.
The aim is to achieve a certain coherence, an image that is contemporary and timeless at the same time, and that will instinctively belong to the location. The ambition of this project lies in forming an up-to-date image as a landmark for the user and the visitor.
More information
Architects
Client
Arcadis, De Lijn.
Collaborators
Execution.- DDS+.
Dates
June 2013 - 2020.
Location
Antwerp, Belgium.
Photography
Kurt Van Belle, Patricia Medina Prieto. Van Belle & Medina
Van Belle & Medina is an internationally renowned architectural firm that builds its reputation after winning many prestigious competitions. Their work ranges from residential projects, institutional buildings, infrastructures to urban master plans and landscape projects. Award-winning projects such as the Care and Health Center for the Elderly 'Innovative Living in the future' in Sint Truiden, the VDAB headquarters in Kortrijk, the Psychiatric Campus -Master Plan and Architecture- UPC Sint Kamillus in Leuven, and the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Granada, among others, have reinforced the firm's experience in the development of a wide range of projects of different scale and scope.
The firm was founded in 2004 after winning the international EUROPAN 7 award, and since then, the office has often been invited to participate in public and private tenders, which have generally resulted in successful results and highly executed projects.
Since graduation, Kurt Van Belle and Patricia Medina have maintained a balance between their professional activity and their academic involvement. They have been teaching at several of the most prestigious universities in Europe, such as TU Delft, AvB Maastricht, E.T.S.A. Granada and EsArq - UIC Barcelona, and they are frequent guests at conferences and exhibitions.
The architecture of Van Belle & Medina arises from the idea that each project is an expressive tool to reflect contemporary life. Creativity and innovation are at the center of design process, which responds to the global and local needs of a society in a continuous process of transformation.
The firm was founded in 2004 after winning the international EUROPAN 7 award, and since then, the office has often been invited to participate in public and private tenders, which have generally resulted in successful results and highly executed projects.
Since graduation, Kurt Van Belle and Patricia Medina have maintained a balance between their professional activity and their academic involvement. They have been teaching at several of the most prestigious universities in Europe, such as TU Delft, AvB Maastricht, E.T.S.A. Granada and EsArq - UIC Barcelona, and they are frequent guests at conferences and exhibitions.
The architecture of Van Belle & Medina arises from the idea that each project is an expressive tool to reflect contemporary life. Creativity and innovation are at the center of design process, which responds to the global and local needs of a society in a continuous process of transformation.
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