Agora in Rotterdam seeks to redefine public space in today's city. More specifically, it explores how the architecture of public buildings relates to the continuing changes in and transformations of public space in the 21st century. Issues that arise in this context are how to accommodate the rapidly changing programmes in enduring architectural structures, how to stack urban programmes to densify the city and how to solve the problem of making publicly accessible buildings safe.

It seems that boredom is a major factor in the success or failure of public spaces. Boredom is the expression of monotony, of sameness. Boredom as a strong driving force for action, for leaving the house and getting out into public life and for consuming, and maybe turning consuming into something other than a 'passive' activity. Architects, in accepting everyday life as a given - including the boredom, the mixing of high and low culture, the questing aspect of experiment - should surrender to the modern condition. My goal is to listen to the generic and confront it with a playful architecture. In such architecture, movement is as important as stasis, the generic as valuable as the specific.

The design is for a building that combines cultural duties with exhibition areas, a multi-purpose theatre and spaces for visiting artists to work in. The 'agora' or space of encounter is linked to the 'academia', space intended for study. This in analogy to the example of the architect Frank van Klingeren, who in striving for a more humane society used the term 'ontklontering' (literally, unclotting) to bring homogeneous groups into contact with one another. Another source of inspiration for the design was the artist Peter Struyken. He contends that a truly exhilarating environment stimulates the individuality of each person to the full. So it is important that we as individuals can find our bearings and identify with our surroundings. In Struyken's view this is to be achieved by introducing differences and complications into a large dedicated space. It consolidates the relation between building, human scale and nature.

Typical features of the present project are its extension of the landscape into the building and the presence of an external route, the ramp, which serves various ends. In the first place this ramp delivers light into the massive building. Second, it accesses the complex at various points. Third, in circling the agora it adds to the sense of belonging inside the building by making space for creative activity. Lastly, it holds out points of contact with which the individual can identify with the surroundings, thereby stimulating individuality in what is a shared space.

The cultural centre is assembled from three floor plans distinguished by different types of structure. The two lowest levels are free-form and consist of two intertwining spirals round the theatre. The third level functions as a roof sheltering the artificial landscape beneath it. A continuous floor slab carrying a host of functions winds its way round the open multifunctional agora, so that the building has the character of one big landscape marked by changes of focus.

Place of education: TU Delft
Specialization: architecture
Tutors: Susanne Komossa, Paz Martin, Bas Gremmen