CO OB (office jarrik ouburg + paulien bremmer architects) + cc studio

‘co-ob’

‘co-ob’, a collaboration between amsterdam based practices paulien bremmer architects and office jarrik ouburg, has won the genieloods international design competition. this collaboration worked together with cc-studio who were responsible for the structure and building physics of the project.

the subject of the design competition was the reuse of historic military barracks called ‘genieloods’ into a centre for contemporary art. the barrack is located on the premises of the fortress and art centre kunstfort bij vijfhuizen in the netherlands. the fortress is part of the defence line of amsterdam,  a complex of dikes, locks, fortresses, and other structures in a large circle around the capital and inscribed on the UNESCO’s world heritage list.

interior of ‘co-ob’

the ‘genieloods’ dates from 1896. the steel frame of the barrack is clad with one single layer of corrugated iron sheets. this results in an indoor climate that is unsuitable for expositions: in summer it is extremely hot and in winter very cold.

due to the fact that any alteration to a building with monumental status has to be reversible, the architects proposed to clad the interior of the barrack with curtains made of light weight space blankets. the reflecting qualities of this NASA-developed material keeps the heat out in summer and in winter keeps the warmth produced by floor heating in. during in between seasons when the indoor climate is comfortable, the curtains will be mechanically rolled-up revealing the original interior of the barrack again. ‘co-ob’ exterior facade clad with one single layer of corrugated iron sheets

the mirroring qualities of the material will transform the narrow barrack into an optically infinite space, making the art visible from the front, back and top. natural light will be reflected in countless ways creating good lighting conditions to exhibit art.

the new exhibition space will be in sharp contrast with the dark exhibition spaces in the bunkers of the fortress itself.


aerial view

sectional view

longitudinal section

floor plan