A design proposal for the naval dockyard at Oosterdok to make good that harbour basin's potential as public space by bringing out its unique hidden qualities.

The naval dockyard at Oosterdok in Amsterdam is a fascinating hidden place thanks to the high wall surrounding it, a wall that makes one curious as to the world beyond it.
Urban developments in the vicinity have utterly changed Oosterdok's position in the city from an edge place to a central public space. If the naval dockyard is in effect a vacuum in both physical and civic terms in its relation to Oosterdok, all other edges enjoy a clear spatial and programmatic relationship with the harbour basin. The 'black hole' of the hidden naval dockyard is a stumbling block to the efficient functioning of Oosterdok as new public space. Paradoxically, its concealment is at the same time its strength.
By deploying that concealment as a quality and making it public, Oosterdok will make good its potential as new public space in
the city. After extensive research it transpired that a public hidden place is marked by a sequence of spaces each of which is perceived in its own way. A key role is set aside for the links between those spaces in cranking up the tension. The perception of the 'spaces' is designed as a matrix; the buildings are the result, the reverse matrix. By stringing the spaces together, a structure emerges that allows for a variety of routes.
The design constructs a number of layers that display the wealth contained by the project. Five individual types of spaces have their own atmosphere, programme, use and degree of concealment. These types vary between a main square to secret rooms. The secret rooms are the most tucked away, yet each is linked spatially to the context of Oosterdok.
As a city structure, the project is of key importance to Oosterdok. The new silhouette represents 'the city behind the wall'. The DNA of the hidden city secures its cohesion and heightens its singularity. Height accents added at strategic and crucial points play a game of visibility, invisibility and attraction from the inside outwards and from the outside inwards. Now the naval dockyard is both hidden and public!

Place of education: AvB Amsterdam | Specialization: urban design | Tutors: Ron van Genderen, Hans van der Made, Mark Eker