Provincial Hall, Groningen
The design for the extension
took as its stepping-off point the existing Provincial Hall and the
neighbouring registry building. The use of local red brick refers to both and
is there for continuity’s sake. The main entrance sits in the head of an
elongated building part forming the central axis of the complex. All parts
exfoliate from this axis. The various functions can be read in the built form
and the materiality. The centre lines of the three radiating office slabs
intersect at the Martini
Tower. As in the facades
of the conference halls, the aluminium-
framed window bands and the vertical joins stress the horizontality of the
office frontage. Vertical strips of clear glass articulate the brick walls of
stairs and lifts. The restaurant with its view of the old moat and garden
courtyards has a floor that descends stepwise. The footpath is a ramp bridging
the difference in height with the water.
Client
Gedeputeerde
Staten Provincie Groningen
Architect
Benthem
Crouwel Architekten
Interior
architect
Benthem
Crouwel Architekten BV bna
Gross
floor area
13500
m²
Start
design
1989
Start
construction
1993
Completion
1995
