MAD architects reveals proposal for danshuis center in rotterdam

danshuis center to transform rotterdam’s riverfront

Once again, Netherlands-based Droom en Daad Foundation has invited MAD Architects aboard its mission to transform Rotterdam’s old Provimi warehouse into a new cultural destination along the Mas River. This new proposal will see the addition of a world-class dance center, Danshuis, equipped with professional dance studios, theaters, and exhibition spaces. Once completed, Danshuis will echo the adjacent Fenix Museum of Migration, MAD’s first European cultural project. Together, the new institutions will materialize and strengthen the connection of the city’s cultural fabric.

all visualizations © Proloog

a symbol of freedom & pluralism nodding to antiquity

‘Through this latest major cultural project, the Droom en Daad Foundation aims to make the city of Rotterdam, a world leader through art and culture. The Danshuis transforms the old warehouse on the south bank of the Mas River Rotterdam into a symbol of freedom and pluralism. A vibrant place for exchanging world dance culture,’ comments the MAD Architects team.

For Danshuis, MAD Architects has retained the original warehouse structure while introducing several iconic design gestures to express the pursuit of freedom and pluralism. Lead architect Ma Yansong proposed a yellow seagull sculpture on the second-floor landscaped terrace with red neon signs facing the river. In the middle area of the top floor, the team included an open-air, semi-circular theater in a nod to the Ancient Greek gathering spaces. Animated by dancers performing in the orchestra pit, the classicism of this space masterfully contrasts the contemporary backdrop of the rapidly changing scenery along the Mas River Rotterdam.

Danshuis will sit adjacent to the Fenix Museum of Migration

Ultimately, through such poetic and theatrical gestures, visitors and dancers alike will feel the outdoors from within, the process of watching and being watched, and the free transmission of art through tangible and intangible forms. ‘Dance is a flowing art of space. To emphasize that and respect the locality and history of the building, we decided to make minimum change to the original structure, just to add art installations in conversation with the environment,’ shares Ma Yansong. ‘With this second commission from Droom en Daad Foundation, we hope to highlight Rotterdam’s yearning for freedom and embracing of diverse global cultures. The Fenix Museum of Migration and the Danshuis are closely linked and will look to the future together in Rotterdam’s century-old port.‘

The Fenix Museum of Migration is scheduled for completion in 2024. As for the Danshuis center, construction is likely to begin soon.

an outdoor performance space nodding to ancient Greece’s gathering spaces