© 2006 Jan Derwig
LIBRARY ZEEWOLDE
K.J. VAN VELSEN, 1985-1989
Kerkstraat 2, Zeewolde
ARCHITECT(URAL OFFICE):
Koen van Velsen
BUILDING TYPE:
Libraries
ARCHITECT(URAL OFFICE):
Koen van Velsen
BUILDING TYPE:
Libraries
PUBLICATIONS:
Archis 1989-5; de Architect 1989-9; Cement 1990-11; Werk, Bauen + Wohnen 1990-1/2; Bauwelt 1992 p. 1566; Jaarboek 1989-1990; J. Rodermond - Koen van Velsen, architect, 1995
From the outside it seems a simple square building of perforated concrete panels, with a transparent steel-framed prefatory volume above the entrance prompted by the arcade prescribed in the brief. Inside, a collage of elementary forms, untreated materials (wood, concrete, corrugated sheet, multi-ply) and measurement and constructional systems combine in a composition complex in both plan and section. For example, the reading room is a cabin sunk into the upper floor with a curving roof of its own, and ramps effect vertical circulation. So despite its modest volume the building admits to a complex internal spatiality that scarcely acknowledges a division into storeys. Full-height concrete panels with small window openings punched in them float clear of the floor on a linear cushion of fenestration. The upper storey floor is borne aloft by groups of three columns gently radiating upwards in a move to deny a sense of regularity even here.