XDGA - Xaveer De Geyter Architects

XDGA is a Brussels and Paris-based office practicing architecture, urbanism and landscape design founded in 1988 by Xaveer De Geyter (°1957) after his experience at OMA/Rem Koolhaas.

Since then, XDGA has managed to build up a significant portfolio and obtain worldwide recognition thanks to its radical approach, diversified expertise and international team.

XDGA counts to this day 5 monographs, numerous awards (Mies Van der Rohe Award, Bigmat Award, Flemish Culture Award for Architecture) and 3 travelling solo exhibitions.

Statement
Ideally architecture is not about fixing activities, fluxes or programs, or worse, about solving spatial problems. On the contrary, it is about opening up possibilities: the potential of a site, the hidden opportunity of a particular situation in time, of a programmatic conflict. It is about dealing with uncertainty, about enabling different and unforeseen scenarios. In that sense architecture and urbanism are not opposed disciplines with different outcomes, but similar mediators, on different scales and in different degrees of complexity, with the same goal of enabling life.

The basis for architecture in our way of working is to carry out a meticulous scanning of a brief, a program or a context. Context not just as that what physically surrounds a project, but the larger field of social, economic, political, administrative and also technical issues, all on an equal level. This activity of accurate and systematic reading leads to a matrix of knowledge that frames any architectural decision. Sometimes this framework functions as a backdrop for postponed intuitions, sometimes it forms the battlefield for a bombardment of architectural proposals that slowly gain self-evidence through a process of trial and error. The scanning raises new questions, opens up unexplored fields, reveals hidden opportunities, or brings together so-called incompatibilities. Through this working method all projects are rooted in their context, but as context has a visible and a hidden part, they often surpass their physical context and they sometimes completely transform it.

This explorative approach leads to a working method, not a style. Instead, style is restrictive to exploration. Our approach saves us from dogmatic thinking, from an all too narrow agenda, from the architectural one-liner.

Doug Allard, David Ampe, Vincent Blactot, Tom Bonnevalle, Maud Bouhin, Lionel Bousquet, Jérémie Brault, Karel Bruyland, Rémy Carat, Elena Caruso, Antoine Chaudemanche, Pieter Coelis, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Johan Cool, Catherine Cornu, Elisabeth d' Aubarède, Xaveer De Geyter, Joris De Greef, Thaïs de Roquemaurel, Chloé de Salins, Jacqueline De Souza Luduvice, Pieter De Walsche, Marie Debraine, Hanne Defloor, Nathalie Devoghelaere, Nicolas Duerinck, Nenad Duric, Eleonor Ferragu, Sandra Fol, Arie Gruijters, Annelotte Herrebosch, Yasmine Houari, Ingrid Huyghe, Ménélik Jobert, Karla Kovacevic, Paul-Emmanuel Lambert, Solène Le Gallo, Jonathan Robert Maj, Leo Mazurek, Philip Niekamp, Emilia Ockerman, Federico Pedrini, Camelia Petre, Julien Picard, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Dana Smetankova, Yuichiro Suzuki, Foucault Tiberghien, Willem Van Besien, Wouter Van Daele, Catherine Van Driessche, Marie-Pierre Vandeputte, Simon Vellut, Samia Wahbi, Ulysse Zehnlé, Rui Zenha.

2015
GA_160_EXPO, Galerie Jaroslava Fragnera, Prague, Czech Republic.
2015
XDGA_160_EXPO, Casa dell’Architettura, Rome, Italy.
2014
XDGA_160_EXPO, Eesti Arhitektuurimuuseumis, Tallinn, Estonia.
2013
XDGA_160_EXPO, CIVA, Brussels, Belgium.
2006
Le Parc De Richelieu, Arc en Rêve centre d’architecture, Bordeaux, France.
2002
AFTER-SPRAWL, deSingel International Art Center, Antwerp, Belgium.
2001
Xaveer De Geyter Architecten, 12 Projects, deSingel International Art Center, Antwerp, Belgium.

2020

Xaveer De Geyter Architects 2005-2020, El Croquis 204, Madrid, Spain.

2013

XDGA_161_BOOK, Lannoo Publishers, Tielt, Belgium.

2002

Xaveer De Geyter Architects 1992-2005, El Croquis 126, Madrid, Spain.

2001

After-sprawl, Research for the Contemporary City, NAi Uitgevers, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

2001

Xaveer De Geyter Architects, 12 PROJECTS, Ludion, Belgium.

2021

Brussels Architecture Prize, category winner 'Extra Muros', for Melopee School, Ghent, Belgium
Bigmat Award, Grand International Prize, for Melopee School, Ghent, Belgium
Belgian Prize for Architecture, category winner, for Melopee School, Ghent, Belgium

2014

Flemish Culture Award for Architecture

2013

Bigmat Award, Grand International Prize, for Kitchen Tower, Brussels, Belgium
Belgian Prize for Architecture, category winner, for Kitchen Tower, Brussels, Belgium

2005

Académie d’architecture, France, prix de l’urbanisme, for Îlot Saint Maurice urban plan, Lille, France

2003

Mies van der Rohe award, finalist, for the Chasse Park Apartments, Breda, The Netherlands

1993

Architecture prize from the Province of Antwerp, for the House near Antwerp, Belgium
Charles Wilford Prize, category realizations, for a House with Workshop near Ghent, Belgium: first prize; for a House near Antwerp, Belgium: second prize

1992

Charles Wilford Prize, category projects, for House near Antwerp, Belgium: first prize

Xaveer De Geyter Architects Brussels

Handelskaai 48
Quai Du Commerce
B–1000 Brussels
+32 (0)2 218 88 86
info@xdga.be

Xaveer De Geyter Architects Paris

18 Rue Du Faubourg Du Temple
FR–75011 Paris
+33 (0)1 58 30 99 61
info@xdga.be

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Please send a digital version of your résumé, portfolio and motivation letter as a single PDF (smaller than 8MB) to jobs@xdga.be

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N°
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Selected projects
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Type
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301

Flag Square and Regional Development Centre
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Vlora

Urban

Commission

Ongoing

2019–

66.500

Located in the historical heart of the city the Flag Square is no longer adapted to its current use and traffic situation. The project for the public space imagines a complete restructuring of the space, introducing a more human scale and better defined spaces. The existing structure earmarked to become the Regional Development Centre speaks of a long and difficult relation between the site and the surrounding city. At an overall length of over 150 meters and a height of more than 65m the existing structure is itself of an almost ‘urban’ scale, a ‘super’structure that has the potential to house a big amount of programs, functions and architectures. The site and building have to deal with a remarkable dichotomy of scales and urbanity between the north-eastern and south-western context. On the north and especially the east the project faces the fine, small-scale historic tissue of the recently renovated old city. On the western side the building faces a much larger scaled context, loaded with symbolic landmarks of national importance. The scale is defined by the main Flag Square, the large public park and the large ‘Boulevard’ avenue. The building project employs two main tools, inspired more on urban design than architecture. The first tool is the creation of two open and public galleries that cut through the superstructure from east to west. These galleries reduce the perceived scale of the massive structure and allow for a previously lacking porosity through the ground floor. The second urban tool that defines the architecture of the building is the creation of a ‘vertical’ public street, reaching from the public ground floor, over the roof garden all the way up to the panoramic bar at the top of the sculptural tower volume. As the main public thoroughfare of the building, it is the place where the front doors of the different program components will address themselves to. This exterior semi-public vertical street serves many functions. It is the negative space that transforms the building into a sculpture, it forms the terrace and balcony space for the programs inside the building, it will serve as a main public circulation though the structure – dimensioned for large masses moving up and down – but mainly it serves as a connector, a link between the old and new, heritage and innovation, between the artisans and the young coders, linking people as well as the city and the superstructure.

Location
Vlora
Type
Urban
Procedure
Commission
Status
Ongoing
Year
2019–
Size (m²)
66.500

Client
Albanian Development Fund (ADF)
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Pieter Coelis, with Karla Kovacevic, Jonathan Robert Maj, Rui Zehna
Consultants
iRI sh.p.k. (engineering), Jeshile sh.p.k. (landscape)
298

Ministry of Finances Berlin
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Berlin

Civic

Competition

Competition

2021

71.600

The starting point of the new project is to optimize and centralize the Federal Ministry of Finance into a single location in the Post Block area of Berlin. The site context is complex, consisting of an urban historical residue following the end of the war, and made of a series of individual lots and building types re-inhabited over the last 70 years. Our particular plot is situated between two buildings used by the Ministry of Finance: the Post block building in direct relation to the site, and the Detlev-Rohwedder-Hause, which sits opposite the site, across the Wilhelmstraße. The basis of the main volume is a direct response to the urban context and the desire to fill the void with a strong form inspired by the qualities of the neighboring building typologies.
An overall structure of three internal Courtyards and eight Windows organize the project. The window’s function is to penetrate the mass and create a strong relationship with the surrounding and the urban context. Some of the windows become courtyards while others are set back and give direct light into the main interior spaces. Some have a direct relation with the green zone created on the east side of the site.
At the ground floor level, the large horizontal openings intersect each other and the vertical courtyards to maximize transparency at the pedestrian level and to create views through the building linking the street to the private landscapes in the interior of the block. The cuts leave behind eight solid “feet” to accommodate the dark program: cores for vertical circulation with stairs, elevators, and technical shafts. The top level is a secured zone reserved for the management and the minister of finance, conceived as a roof pavilion surrounded by greenery.
The compact main volume and organization of the project on the site is oriented in such a way that it reserves space towards the inside of the block for a “backyard” of substantial green space. Three extensions make connections between the new form and the neighboring context. The “backyard” is terminated by the largest of the connections containing mostly a housing program for the academic wing of the BMF, closing the northern facade of the block. The green strip offers a new relationship between the existing Post block building, its courtyard, and the General Postgarten with the historical tree, a protected natural monument. The intermediate space acts as the social green area for the project—it forms a sequence of backyards, gardens, and roofscapes that extend the quality outdoor space beyond the site boundary. The employees of the BMF will benefit from the close proximity to quality and spacious outdoor green spaces, as well as being in the immediate vicinity of the private gardens in the green façade.

Location
Berlin
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2021
Size (m²)
71.600

Client
Ministry of Finance
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Johan Cool, Marie Debraine, Nathalie Devoghelaere, Philip Niekamp
Consultants
Bollinger+Grohmann (structure, fire)
Boydens / Sweco (mechanics)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
295

*

Ministry of Finances Düsseldorf
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Düsseldorf

Civic

Competition

Competition

2021

79.000

Located in the heart of the government district, the site is situated at the intersection of two differently-oriented parts of the city. The design primarily aims to mediate between these two different environments by addressing both, yet at the same time giving the site a clear identity. The two buildings are conceived as two similar, compact structures, but they identify their own specific relationships to the base and the city. The atrium building, a low structure punctuated by large openings facing Harold Street, sits directly on top of the base, establishing an immediate connection with its first floor surroundings. The high-rise, on the other hand, supported by its own core, presents itself as a floating lighthouse. The tension between these two orthogonal building volumes also provides unexpected perspectives on the city, achieved through large open windows with gardens. The purpose of raising this building is twofold: to create a new landmark, and to free up space above the base to make it publicly accessible and fully open to daylight.
The plinth is the direct translation of a natural landscape into a new building form that allows the programmatic organization of the shared and special services, the publicly accessible catering area, the conference rooms, and the library. The main entrance is situated central in between the 2 buildings as the extension of “Green Harold’s Bay”. Through a wide gate, the central patio in the plinth is reached, where the main entrances to the FM Building (high-rise) and the 2nd and 3rd users building (Atrium building) are situated. The tower features two special outdoor spaces: a large loggia (a window facing the Rhine) and a sheltered, lushly landscaped roof terrace. Users of the atrium building benefit from intersecting voids: a vertical shaft that terminates at the ground floor entrance atrium, and two large horizontal openings at the front and rear that bring even more daylight inside and encourage connections to the outside. The atrium building also provides the above-ground parking garage as a flexible base for future office space expansion, taking into account future changes in traffic circulation.

Location
Düsseldorf
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2021
Size (m²)
79.000

Client
Ministry of Finance of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Johan Cool, Marie Debraine, Nathalie Devoghelaere, Philip Niekamp, Jonathan Robert Maj, Federico Pedrini
Consultant
Bollinger+Grohmann (structure, mechanics)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
294

ESCP
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Paris

Civic

Competition

Competition

2021

28.000

The ESCP Paris Campus site has never stopped evolving during the 200 years of its existence. Our ambition, in the face of this constant change, is the one to create a distinctive identity for the future ESCP Paris République Campus.
The set of buildings is conceived as being be composed by different, intertwined parts forming a coherent whole.
Unlike the current situation, however, the peculiarity of each part will go hand in hand with the complex overall functioning. The three large voids, corresponding to the three current courtyards, hence become new spaces with a strong characterisation: the Garden, the Courtyard and the Atrium.
The construction of a new building replacing the one from the ‘70s has many advantages: it makes the school less imposing in relation to the neighbourhood, it allows the addition of a secondary access and opens up common activities (catering areas, amphitheatre and coworking) from the ground floor to the surroundings.
An extra wide corridor open to the outside moreover gives access to the various functions of the school as well as allowing for informal meetings: we called this space “the gateway”.
The last three floors of this building - under a glass roof conforming to the Haussmann template – finally form the signal volume, that looks upon the landscape of the roofs of Paris.

Location
Paris
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2021
Size (m²)
28.000

Client
CCI-Paris Ile-de-France
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Vincent Blactot, Rémy Carat, Elena Caruso, Antoine Chaudemanche, Chloé De Salins, Marie Debraine, Nenad Duric, Eleonor Ferragu, Dana Smetankova, Ulysse Zehnlé
Consultants
Bollinger+Grohmann (structure)
Alto Ingénierie (mechanical)
Eco+Construire (economy)
Jeudi Wang + XDGA (image + video)
278

*

De Swaef
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Brussels

Education

Competition, 1st Prize

Ongoing

2021–

13.700

Located in the heart of the residential district of Scheut, the large Leopold de Swaef site will host two new schools and several new indoor and outdoor sports facilities.
The architectural and landscape project is concentrated around the perimeter of the plot, thus becoming part the large-block fabric characterising the Scheut district. The layout of the volumes alternates between full and empty, creating a balance between open and closed spaces, between the urban scale and the domestic one. This "built periphery" surrounds a Large Garden, a central space around which all the buildings are articulated and connected by a covered gallery, that acts as a filter between interior and exterior. In the northern part of the site, a triangular square is created to accommodate the flows of the various users of the site but also activities for the inhabitants of the district.
The logic of the project was directed towards the constitution of an urban form capable of bringing together all the institutions involved and of stimulating interaction between them while, at the same time, guaranteeing potential for future extension. A system where the whole is worth more than the sum of the parts.

Location
Brussels
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Ongoing
Year
2021–
Size (m²)
13.700

Client
Fédération Wallonie Bruxelles
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Antoine Chaudemanche, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Chloé de Salins, Marie Debraine
Consultants
Michel Desvignes Paysage (landscape)
Util (structure)
Boydens Bureau bouwtechniek (mechanics)
Daidalos Peutz (acoustics)
Tractebel (mobility)
Speculoos (signalisation)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
Illustration
Eva Le Roi
276

Van Overbeke
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Brussels

Residential

Competition

Competition

2020

14.000

XDGA’s proposal embraces the heritage of Ganshoren by happily adopting the bird's wing layout resulting from the subdivision permit, and by exploiting the typological and spatial qualities that derive from such configuration. Contemporary issues, such as sustainability and new ways of living, are subsequently brought into the picture.
The volumetry is a hybridization of the fabrics spotted in the surroundings: it is juxtaposition of a slightly curved bar that dialogues with the other towers on the scale of the district, and an active base made up of one-storey pavilions, designed on the scale of the neighborhood.
The nursery, the community hall and the indoor sports equipment, arranged in "pavilions" and in continuity with the public space, in fact, go beyond the imposed building line in order to get closer to the street, liven up the park and thus radiate in the neighborhood.
The proposal is ultimately the result of a reflection on collective housing, a topic that requires a profound revision at a time when the border between professional and domestic spheres is thin, lifestyles are diversifying and the ways of working, living, cooking and having fun are being transformed by the increasing digitization of our daily lives.

Location
Brussels
Type
Residential
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2020
Size (m²)
14.000

Client
SRLB (Société du Logement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale)
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Chloé de Salins, Jacqueline De Souza Ludivice, Marie Debraine, Nathalie Devoghelaere, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Willem Van Besien
Consultants
Bollinger+Grohmann (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (techniques, EPB)
Atelier Miething Paysage (landscape)
Enthalpie (security)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
270

X24 Rectorate of Créteil
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Cretéil

Civic

Competition

Competition

2020

21.000

In order to accommodate the Rectorate of the Academy of Créteil, we sought to imagine a building that would balance expressionism and pragmatism.
We believe that the project should, in fact, rediscover that breath of modernity of the buildings that make up the landscape of Créteil, while managing to create a new identity.
The materialisation of the project is, in this respect, essential. Concrete, of which we appreciate the plastic quality, would be too connoted; wood as a cladding material for the façade would risk being too fragile, both from a technical and a symbolic standpoint. We finally opted for a generalised use of glass and aluminium.
If we put forward the pragmatism dictating our choices, it is because we have conceived this project as an exemplary tool. The plan is regulated to adapt the building to its site: 4 straight angles and 2 arcs of circle are enough to build its geometry. A structural grid made out of wooden columns and slabs guarantees flexibility to the interior spaces and their future evolution.
In this case the building, in accordance with the request of the town planners, is constructed by layers. Three layers. The plinth is conceived as a solid, dark element that is more reflective than a matt mineral treatment but is just as durable. The body, slightly coloured and transparent, reveals the activity taking place inside the building. Finally the crown, the line of contact with the sky, which we propose covered in a reflective glass that mirrors the sky itself and dissolves the building into the atmosphere.
The design of the working spaces is none other than the result of a larger strategy. Wellbeing on the workplace involves creating the conditions for comfort in terms of light, acoustics, climate and a series of psychological factors. The outdoor spaces extending from the offices such as terraces, loggias and galleries are all places to meet, walk and work. They are as adaptable as their interior counterpart and can accommodate new working practices. Gardens furthermore develop from the very bottom up until the floors of the galleries. The whole forms a supplementary layer of the project, the substrate of its acceptance. We named it the ‘negotiated layer’, because it adapts according to uses, it offers a variety of natural environments, alongside with conditions of calm or even unexpected relations.

Location
Cretéil
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2020
Size (m²)
21.000

Client
Rectorate of the Academy of Créteil
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer de Geyter, Vincent Blactot, Antoine Chaudemanche, Chloé De Salins, Marie Debraine, Ménélik Jobert, Leo Mazurek, Philip Niekamp, Matthias Van Rossen, Samia Wahbi, Ulysse Zehnlé
Consultants
Bollinger+Grohmann (structure)
Alto Ingénierie (mechanical)
Eco+Construire (quantity surveyor)
Ecome (environment)
Made by Mistake + XDGA (model)
Peutz (acoustics)
TP WorkUnit (workplace design)
Images
ArtefactoryLab
266

Arena BSB
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Brasilia

Urban

Competition

Competition

2019

285.000

The main characteristic of Brasilia's urban landscape is the dialogue between the four scales proposed by Lucio Costa in the Plano Piloto: Monumental, Gregarious, Residential and Bucolic.
The proposal for the Arena BSB Complex integrates the bucolic scale of the city and emphasizes the idea of the “park city” idealized by Lucio Costa. The new buildings are objects, surrounded by local green areas, creating an intermediate density permeated by spaces that work at the pedestrian scale and connect the various uses of the Complex.
The project had to take into consideration some objects already existing on the site such as: the National Stadium of Brasilia Mané Garrincha, the multi-sports complex Ginásio Nilson Nelson, and the Cláudio Coutinho water park. Each of these elements had its own flow system that somehow needed to be integrated into the new proposal.
The masterplan for the Complex was conceived as an overlay of four layers:
The first of these is the Boulevard. The Boulevard is the backbone of the Complex, along which run the pedestrian route and underground parking areas. This element connects the various proposed uses: sports, health, leisure and entertainment. The Boulevard route maintains a solemn distance from the Stadium, which stands out as the protagonist in the landscape. This distance furthermore gives room to create large plazas and intermediate parks;
The second layer consists of the volumes of the new buildings that find place along the Boulevard, following its curves. In these buildings is distributed most of the program with restaurants, bars, leisure, entertainment, sports, and offices;
The third layer shows the empty pathways that cut through the volumes of buildings connecting the northern and southern areas of the project;
The fourth and last layer contains the areas of the buildings with specific uses, which touch or cross the Boulevard and hold unique shapes that make them stand out in the Complex. These are the Aquarium, the Organic Market and the Cinema.

Location
Brasilia
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2019
Size (m²)
285.000

Client
Arena BSB
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Elena Caruso, Menelik Jobert, Jacqueline Luduvice, Philip Niekamp, Greta Torsello
Consultants
Atelier 77 (local architects)
Fernando Cunha (renders)
263

*

CCN
^[more]

Brussels

Civic

Competition

Competition

2019

132.000

The site’s context presents a clear paradox: on the one hand, it is one of the most infrastructurally-connected areas in Brussels, while on the other hand, it lacks coherent public and pedestrian connections. The train station, metro stop and bus terminal are all hidden by one main building - the CCN building - that blocks entrances and impedes fluxes. The existing bus terminal manifests itself as a strong buffer that kills any attempt to open some program on the ground floor. With its raised plinth, in fact, access to all major public and commercial programme located in the existing building is rendered arduous. Our task was to invert the definition of this space, allocate a large public space for pedestrians, and integrate the bus terminal within the plinth. Lifting the main part of the building allowed us to create a deep, continuous public path crossing the whole plot to access the station directly and creating, at the same time, a gentle friction and exchange between the train station, the bus terminal and the metro stop. The proposed feet of the towers all contain commercial programme. The cafeteria and bicycle parking are facing the square towards the train station. A shopping mall and a market hall are closing the space on the northern part of the plot, and open in continuity with a park, they are all addressing the local, small scale of this part of the city.
The main lifted slab hosts a public programme, readable through its green coloured glass. It connects to the other side of the city, a side that is today strongly isolated by the train tracks and the station itself. Its specific open and transparent design offers panoramic views on this part of town. The housing units and hotel are located on the side of the project, contained in the towers, that offer great views and exterior spaces with a 270° panorama. The offices enjoy a very rational and generic layout, while the middle slab is punctuated by large patios and additional specific programme.

Location
Brussels
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2019
Size (m²)
132.000

Client
AXA, AG RE, Atenor
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Antoine Chaudemanche, Joris de Greef, Arie Gruijters, Ménélik Jobert, Gaspard Lévêque, Hannelore Thomas
Consultants
Tractebel (mobility)
CityTools (participation)
Kaderstudio (architecture, interior)
MAD (workplace)
BXL MRS (economics, sustainability)
Accattone (public art)
Photos
XDGA - Matthias Van Rossen
261

El Croquis
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Madrid

Publication

Commission

Published

2019–2020

–

This monograph focuses on the work accomplished by Xaveer De Geyter Architects between 2005 and 2020, office founded by this Belgian architect in 1991.
Xaveer de Geyter (Doornik - Belgium, 1957) graduated at the Architecture Institute St. Lucas in Ghent in 1981. After that, he started working at Rem Koolhaas' office (OMA) in Rotterdam, until 1991, when he founded his own office.
At the same time, he has been working as a teacher in the school where he obtained his degree. He has also worked as visiting and guest professor at the Berlage Institute, Delft, Netherlands (1993-2003), the EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland (2004) and the ETH, Zurich, Switzerland (2016).
The office Xaveer De Geyter Architects has won several international competitions, as well as numerous awards throughout its trajectory, including the Flemish Culture Award for Architecture in 2014, the Mies van der Rohe award in 2003 and the Charles Wilford Prize in the years 1993 and 1992.
(from: El Croquis, press release)

Location
Madrid
Type
Publication
Procedure
Commission
Status
Published
Year
2019–2020
Size (m²)
–

Architects
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Lieven De Boeck, Marc Dessauvage, Jonathan Robert Maj
Publisher
El Croquis
260

Citydox
^[more]

Brussels

Residential

Competition, 1st Prize

Ongoing

2019–

25.000

The project superposes a programme of productive activities and housing; in between, on the first floor, an intermediate layer of parking acts as a "buffer zone" between the two.
Not only does this respond to a high groundwater table, yet it protects residents from possible nuisances caused by the productive activities on the ground floor and provides both functions with a potential flexible space for future expansion.
The project furthermore sets out a set of urban principles aimed at creating coherence between the three plots present on the site on the “macro” scale, while preserving their diversity on the “micro” scale. The respect of the building envelopes and the position of the volumes on the plinth ensures, in fact, harmony between the three towers facing the canal, while the individual expression of the facades allows for readability of each element.
This very principle is ultimately applied to neighbouring plots as well.

Location
Brussels
Type
Residential
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Ongoing
Year
2019–
Size (m²)
25.000

Client
Atenor
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition:
Xaveer De Geyter, Vincent Blactot, Karel Bruyland, Remy Carat, Antoine Chaudemanche, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Marie Debraine, Jan Krupicka, Gaspard Leveque, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Emma Vanhille, Dana Vargovcikova, Rui Zenha
definitive design:
Xaveer De Geyter, Karel Bruyland, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Catherine Cornu, Hanne Defloor, Nicolas Duerinck, Nenad Duric, Jan Krupicka, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Hannelore Thomas, Willem Van Besien
Consultants
CSD (structure, techniques)
D2S (acoustics)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
259

Morcote
^[more]

Morcote

Urban

Competition

Competition

2019

230.000

Morcote is a small town overlooking Lake Lugano, locked in between the water and the slopes of Mount Arbòstora.
Though being largely praised for its beauty, the town has unfortunately suffered from years of unwise interventions, that have compromised a direct relationship with the water and have left behind a rather fragmented series of open spaces.
The proposal hence aims at providing the town with a coherent and unitary image through the design of intelligible public spaces, while safeguarding and enhancing the existing qualities of the place.
Specifically, the strategy relies on creating a novel accessibility system, able to link and experience the three main elements present in the landscape: the Lake, the gardens and the monumental complex situated higher up on the mountain.
The lakefront is rendered easily accessible from the town centre by favouring pedestrian use and by creating larger gathering spaces (Piazza del Mercato, Piazza Granda) that alternate with a number of platforms jutting out on the water, at different levels.
New paths (and a lift) are moreover foreseen to connect with the urban spaces situated on the mountain’s slope up North. Here, viewing balconies and ramps take the visitor through the terraced landscape of the gardens, a pattern of wine yards, orchards and urban gardens that culminates in the monumental complex, the historic and cultural heart of the town.

Location
Morcote
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2019
Size (m²)
230.000

Client
City of Morcote
Architects
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Rémy Carat, Elena Caruso, Greta Torsello
Consultants
Inside Outside (landscape)
Project Partners LTD (structure)
Francesco Allievi SA (mobility)
Pedrozzi Associati (geology)
257

Lens
^[more]

Lens

Commercial

Competition, 1st Prize

Under construction

2019–

7.994

The volumetry of the building proposed by XDGA is the result of a direct reaction to the surrounding context. Its layout and shapes fit into the existing alignments and masses. The building is divided into three distinct volumes characterized by different heights and set back from each other.
The first volume to the south-east of the plot lines up with the neighbouring building, a former medical office at Lens station, and thus begins the movement towards the adjacent volumes. Gradually, the facades advance towards rue Jean Létienne to reach the level of the last volume, on the north-west side, and find alignment with the neighbouring building. If on the one hand this subtle play of cusps places the building in its context and ensures continuity between the lots, it simultaneously manages to break the linearity present on rue Jean Létienne. Finally, each volume represents an address for the services proposed on the ground floor.
On a programmatic level, the project proposes a horizontal division into 4 layers. The basement is intended for parking – it can accommodate 52 cars, bicycle parking and technical rooms. The ground floor houses the reception halls of the training centre, offices, the shop for the transport company as well as a café / restaurant. The upper floors accommodate the premises of the training centre and offices.
By virtue of its programming and location, the base enables the surrounding public spaces to be activated. A pedestrian path takes place under the building, thus connecting rue Jean Létienne and the bus station. The latter is a real urban breakthrough. With a width of 15 meters and a significant height, it becomes a protected public space, while serving two of the entrances to the building. Finally, a covered gallery on the bus station side allows public transport users to find shelter while waiting for their bus.
The project's stepped volumetry and the integration of techniques into the building envelope free up large sunny outdoor areas, linked to the platforms. Thus, the occupants of the building will be able to enjoy the views of these hanging gardens.

Location
Lens
Type
Commercial
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Under construction
Year
2019–
Size (m²)
7.994

Client
Tereneo
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Antoine Chaudemanche, Marie Debraine, Jan Krupička
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Jérémie Brault, Antoine Chaudemanche, Beatrice Colaiacomo
execution: Xaveer De Geyter, Jérémie Brault, Beatrice Colaiacomo
Consultants
Ingébois (wood stability)
Descamps Ingénierie (concrete stability)
Econrjbat (mechanics)
Akoustik ingénierie & conseil (acoustics)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
255

*

Mobilis
^[more]

Brussels

Commercial

Competition, 1st Prize

Under construction

2018–

32.000

The client for this building is a car import and dealer company that is fully aware of the deep change and uncertainty the automotive sector will be going through. To put it mildly, electric cars need less maintenance, showrooms are being replaced by websites and are becoming almost superfluous. But more drastically, the sharing economy could mean that car ownership gets replaced by mobility as a service, or cars could simply disappear in the city. For now, a very large car workshop and showrooms for different brands are still part of the program. Equally requested are production spaces for urban industry and farming, and local programs for a neighbourhood in full transition. The site is situated along the Brussels Canal where the urban production economy is encouraged. What is needed is not so much a building type that can be endlessly adapted to new uses, but a structure that can accommodate whatever activity.
A building typology is proposed in which landscape, urban density, logistic movements and architecture merge into one identity. On the inside the building will consist of a rational, orthogonal and generic structure, with large floor spans and a high load bearing concrete structure. With a height of 7meters they will be capable to host any kind of activity. In case this height is not needed intermediate floors in steel will be installed. On the contrary, the curvy façades on the outside are defined by various criteria: the movements of cars and trucks on site, the bending of the main road and the amorphous boundary of the plot. A series of patios and atriums will function as abundant gardens, providing the greenspace that is lacking on the outside.
Despite the heaviness of the structure the large volume will be marked by lightness and transparency. Façades will be fully glazed on one side and filled in with a screen made out of vertical steel cables on the other side.

Location
Brussels
Type
Commercial
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Under construction
Year
2018–
Size (m²)
32.000

Client
D’ieteren Immo
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Antoine Chaudemanche, Lieven De Boeck, Chloe de Salins, Lukas Fink, Jan Krupicka, Emilia Ockerman
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Annelotte Herrebosch, Emilia Ockerman, with David Ampe, Lionel Bousquet, Marie Debraine, Hanne Defloor, Joris De Greef, Chloé de Salins, Lukas Fink, Yuichiro Suzuki, Yannick Vergnaud, Dana Vargovcikova
Consultants
Util Struktuurstudies (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (techniques)
Daidalos Peutz bouwfysisch ingenieursbureau (acoustics)
Securisan (health / security)
Pam & Jenny (signalisation)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
251

Loi 130
^[more]

Brussels

Urban

Competition

Competition

2018

169.300

Close to the other EU Institutional buildings, the LOI130 project is to become the Administrative Headquarters of the EU. The sheer vastness of this venue begs for the question: how to integrate such an XXL premise in a neighbourhood that wants to be urban, mixed and lively throughout the day, while creating an Institution that is less hermetic towards its surroundings?
In order to achieve this ambition, the central element of the project is a large, glazed, collective Void that crosses the entire site. It reveals the internal life of the Headquarter, connects all the elements of the project and lends itself to open programming.
The complex is essentially articulated in four parts: a base, low and mid raises, four high-rises and the Void. All parts and programmes (offices, visitor centre, the Day Nurseries and the Catering) are connected to and articulated around the Void.
A series of public spaces furthermore animate the project and favour the relation with the context:
- a pedestrian and bicycle Passage cutting the midrise building volumes, intervalled by the retails and the main entrances to the EU Commission.
- a large, column free gallery space mediates between Rue de la Loi and the building volume.
- a garden on the level of the Chaussée d’Etterbeek, that hosts the metro entrance, forms a spatial unity with the Jardin de Maelbeek, as well as a forecourt to the Visitor Center inside.

Location
Brussels
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
169.300

Client
European Commission, ec.europa.eu
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects), Gigon&Guyer, BRUTHER
for XDGA: Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Vincent Blactot, Antoine Chaudemanche, Johan Cool, Chloe de Salins, Marie Debraine, Federico Pedrini, Hannelore Thomas
Consultants
Bollinger-Grohmann (structure)
Boydens (mechanics)
Michel Desvigne Paysagiste (landscape)
Transsolar (sustainability)
NZEB (Energy)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
Images
Artefactorylab
248

RITCS
^[more]

Brussels

Education

Competition

Competition

2018

4.000

The environment of the Erasmus University of Applied Sciences at the Nijverheidskaai is in full transition. From a production district, the city's underbelly, she has evolved to a very mixed area, rough but lively. The site and the building complex of the school itself are autonomous and even defensive in that environment.
The addition of a film studio and a theatre to this complex is a great opportunity to revise both the relationship with the neighbourhood and the organization of the school itself. We propose a grid plan in which building parts are interspersed with open spaces.
Within this master plan, it is therefore logical to propose a compact building for the film studio and theatre that is installed separately behind the existing entrance building. All major functions are stacked one above the other to a height of almost forty meters. On the ground floor there is a film studio, above three floors of smaller studios and at the top, with a view of Brussels, the theatre.
The building will manifestly be present in the neighbourhood and within the campus; because of its height, but also because of the strong contrast between open and closed parts, because of the moving goods lift within a translucent volume. In addition to the neighbourhood, but also out of economic necessity, the whole is made up of materials from industrial construction.
A limited part of the existing school will be renovated to house three studios.

Location
Brussels
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
4.000

Client
Erasmushogeschool
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Johan Cool, Lieven De Boeck, Karel Bruyland, Paul-Emmanuel Lambert, Emilia Ockerman, Hannelore Thomas
Consultants
Ney & Partners (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (mechanical)
Daidalos Peutz (acoustics)
TTAS (scenography)
247

HEL Vinci School
^[more]

Brussels

Education

Competition

Competition

2018

23.912

Three concerns are the basis of the design proposal for the new establishment.
Firstly, the programme of both schools is large, if compared to the size of the plot.
Secondly, it is desirable to preserve a public space on the scale of this important new program.
Finally, it is crucial to preserve an adequate distance between the new volume and the ESP building, thus facilitating a harmonious coexistence between the two.
To meet these functional and urban challenges, the project consists of a stepped volume, composed of three superimposed layers which are stacked so as to create a large outdoor space to the East on the ground floor.
On the other side, the building is gradually distanced from the ESP building, originating two long terraces.
The intersection between the different layers of the project is reinforced by two stepped skylights that cross the volume from East to West, that bring natural light inside the building and are visible from the forecourt. In the centre, a staircase leads to all floors from a large atrium. On the last level, roof terraces to the North and East are placed, hidden behind a metal mesh.
The project is composed of 5 levels above ground and 3 levels in the basement hosting the various programs.
These programs are divided into 3 layers within the building: public spaces on the ground floor and first level (lobby, Learning Center and the three auditoriums), private EPHEC spaces on the second level, and private premises of VINCI school from level three to five. The technical and service spaces (parking, archiving, etc.) are ultimately located in the basement.

Location
Brussels
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
23.912

Client
ASBL Haute Ecole Leonard de Vinci
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Antoine Chaudemanche, Pieter Coelis, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Chloé de Salins, Philip Niekamp, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Yannick Vergnaud
Consultants
Bollinger-Grohmann (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (techniques)
Daidalos-Peutz (acoustics)
Sécurisan (security)
246

City Gate
^[more]

Brussels

Urban

Competition

Competition

2018

84.084

In continuity with the developments of the "Plan Canal", the project supports the formidable opportunities that come with a rapidly changing district, where the desired programmatic mix transforms the industrial character of the place while preserving part of its memory.
Here, industrial and infrastructural activities come together in the footsteps of an ancient alluvial plain to form a "small island", that is part of a wider constellation of activities.
Our proposal supports the urban and programmatic ambition envisioned by the plan, by enhancing the specific size of the plot and by promoting the encounter of different activities. The urban intervention, as well as the architectures associated with it, place at the centre of concerns the production of spaces offering great comfort of habitability combined with a strong flexibility of occupations.
The design of the project refers to the intermediate scale present on the site, between large commercial warehouses and neighbouring urban blocks. It is based on this scale in order to respond to the community of activities present on the site, while maintaining various ways of living according to current standards. While its different parts offer possibilities for simple and economical habitats, the project postulates on the exceptional character of the encounters between the different practices rather than the originality of its built forms.

Location
Brussels
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
84.084

Client
Marché de service conjoint SLRB/citydev.brussels
Architects
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects), Baukunst, Bruther
Consultants
Mouton SCRI (structure)
Igrec Ingéniérie SAS – France (mechanics)
Photos
Baukunst
242

Ostend Social Housing Quarter
^[more]

Ostend

Residential

Competition

Competition

2018

52.000

The existing social housing estate, called ‘New City’, has all the qualities of a typical modernist project: large, green open spaces around high-rise apartment buildings with great views, lots of daylight and rather big terraces.
The existing architecture of ‘New City’, however, also exhibits the problematic sides of a typical modernistic project : a green space with no differentiation nor character, a weak link with the surrounding neighbourhoods, a limited amount of housing typologies, and a poor relation of the buildings with the ground level.
The new project will replace the existing buildings while adding extra apartments and programs to the site. In addition, the problematic sides of modernism will be confronted. To do so, we propose three main strategies:
1. Constructing layered and varied public space;
A central square usable and accessible to a wider audience, surrounded by public programs, workplaces and commercial spaces. A series of specific landscape elements instead of the existing, generic greenery. A new high-rise plan that opens up to the surroundings.
2. A quality of living that takes into account the limitations of social housing budgets and regulations, but uses the winter garden as a tool to create extra spatial quality and surface;
3. A plan that allows the whole project to be built in only one phase, in order to limit the inconvenience for the residents and the surroundings.

Location
Ostend
Type
Residential
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
52.000

Client
De Oostendse Haard and De Gelukkige Haard
Architect
XDGA – Xaveer De Geyter Architects
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Karel Bruyland, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Lieven De Boeck, Jacqueline De Souza Luduvice, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Hannelore Thomas, Rui Zenha
Consultants
Michel Desvigne Paysagiste (landscape)
Bollinger + Grohmann (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (mechanics)
241

*

UCBM
^[more]

Rome

Education

Competition

Competition

2018

190.000

Situated on the outskirts of Rome, the masterplan for this bio-medical campus has interesting landscape and topography, and a large hospital building as starting points.
The central element that is proposed is a monumental, linear void, a major public strip along which new buildings will be erected. It is north-south oriented in such a way as to give an address to the hospital. A series of premises of different scale and program will be gradually built around it.
On the other side of this pedestrian green, a new first phase building is imagined, similar in scale, but quite different as a typology. It consists of a two levelled disk of 137 x 103 meters, irregularly perforated by twelve patios, that is elevated above a public space, thus protecting it and creating a moderate outside climate for students, doctors, researchers and visitors to informally meet each other. Some programmatic elements, such as the university restaurant, a bookshop, an arts center, a central access lobby, and several elevator cores inhabit this ground-floor space. The topography remains intact, so that an existing hill at the south end of the strip seems to support the disk. It serves as a natural access to a student housing segment in the new building. The disk includes all of the first phase program: alongside the student housing there will be a mix of educational, administrative, research, sports and other campus life related functions. The façades are marked by a very regular rhythm of structural concrete slabs that span both floors, leaving 60% of the façade open. Set back by two meters is a fully glazed façade, thus creating a second plan not only to settle all irregularities coming from the inside program, but equally providing loggia spaces and an efficient sun protection for the entire building.

Location
Rome
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
190.000

Client
UCBM, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Antoine Barth, Elena Caruso, Lieven De Boeck, Marie Debraine, Chloé De Salins, Mar Garrido, Jan Krupicka, Jacqueline Luduvice, Philip Niekamp, Federico Pedrini, Hannah Perrino, Greta Torsello
Consultants
Studio Altieri (structure)
Studio Altieri (mechanics)
Studio Altieri (acoustics)
Transsolar (sustainability)
Bureau Bas Smets (landscape)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
240

Cargill Headquarters
^[more]

Vilvoorde

Commercial

Competition, 1st Prize

Discontinued

2018–2020

35.000

Since the late seventies the Canal area in Vilvoorde has been transforming from a typical 19th century industrial conurbation into a stretch of green urbanism. What used to be a dense mixture of warehouses, workspaces, housing boroughs and seldom remnants from previous centuries, has now become a configuration of freestanding volumes, mostly housing, on a green carpet with public space all around. Former backyard extensions are now fronts and need to address the park.
Apart from this urban transition, the main objective of the project is to create connectivity and collaboration between Cargill and its customers and visitors, between the Headquarters Offices and the R&D center, between Product Development and ‘Go To Market’ Development, and ultimately between all the different departments. In order to make this possible an elevated, interior street connecting the existing buildings with the new programs is proposed.
It does not only connect, yet it is also a showcase for the Cargill products and production methods. This central device ends up on the north side in a circular shaped restaurant, while on the southside it leads into a new main building, where the street expands into a vast, terraced landscape that functions as a large open work and meeting space, and that connects the new departments.
This Headquarters Building is a very compact and sustainable volume that houses most of the required program. As seen from the front, the diagonally stepped open space cuts across the volume. It is illuminated by an atrium above and it is set back from the front facade to offer an equally stepped terrace. While this part is in transparent glass, the volume beneath is clad in translucent glass and houses the Application Center. The offices, behind a façade made in black glass, are situated on top.

Location
Vilvoorde
Type
Commercial
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Discontinued
Year
2018–2020
Size (m²)
35.000

Client
Cargill
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Johan Cool, Lieven De Boeck, Joris De Greef, Ménélik Jobert, Emilia Ockerman, Greta Torsello
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Joris De Greef and Arie Gruijters, with Doug Allard, David Ampe, Nenad Duric, Mar Garrido, Ménélik Jobert, Yuichiro Suzuki, Hannelore Thomas, Matthias Van Rossen, Rui Zenha
execution design (tender): Xaveer De Geyter, Joris De Greef, Arie Gruijters, with Doug Allard, David Ampe, Nenad Duric, Mar Garrido, Ménélik Jobert, Hannelore Thomas, Rui Zenha
Consultants
Sweco (structure, mechanical, lab engineer, sustainability)
XDGA (landscape)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
239

Hôtel PEX
^[more]

Toulouse

Commercial

Competition, 1st Prize

Ongoing

2018–

14.500

The Toulouse Expo and Convention Center is a newly built complex in the vicinity of the airport and the airplane manufacturing industry. In this context of large scale infrastructure, the demand is to add two hotels. Although security measures tend to obstruct any kind of relation between the hotels and the Expo, the urban form that is proposed suggests the opposite.
Instead of a self-sufficient urban block, a diagonally cross-shaped form opens up four quadrants towards all sides. One is an elevated forecourt and restaurant terrace with monumental stairs and a ramp leading to the hotel lobby. The second one is purely logistic: delivery, kiss & ride for both hotels, parking access. An open air parking under a pergola is planned on the westside, while the fourth quadrant is a hotel garden. A claustra wall on the north and the west separates the hotel from the Expo Center.
The main hotel lobby is situated at the center of the cross over two floors. It gives access to three of the four wings. A five star hotel is situated in the south-east wing and has its access at the tip of the wing. The overall complex counts four floors, while the five star hotel has an additional roof pavillion. The roof is used for dining, swimming and sun-bathing. The second and third floor, which contain the majority of the rooms, are clad in horizontal bands of metal caillebotis, in order to unify the complex.

Location
Toulouse
Type
Commercial
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Ongoing
Year
2018–
Size (m²)
14.500

Client
Kaufman & Broad Midi Pyrénées
Architect
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Joffrey About, Doug Allard, Karel Bruyland, Antoine Chaudemanche, Ménélik Jobert, Dana Vargovcikova
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Marie –Pierre Vandeputte, with Vincent Blactot, Lionel Bousquet, Jeremie Brault, Antoine Chaudemanche, Marie Debraine, Ménélik Jobert, Solène Le Gallo, Jacqueline Luduvice, Julien Picard, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Blanche Tauzin, Dana Vargovcikova, Simon Vellut, Rui Zenha
Consultants
OTEIS Toulouse (structure, mechanics)
ECOME (sustainability)
Atelier Justine Miething (landscape)
Gamba (acoustics)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
237

Conservatory
^[more]

Brussels

Civic

Competition

Competition

2018

9.000

This long-awaited project for the Conservatory should essentially serve three purposes: the overall restoration of the existing components, the reorganization and expansion of the program as far as the location allows, and the improvement of the integration and visibility of the Conservatory in the Brussels city centre. The various outdoor spaces of the site are underused and have no proper relationship with each other. At the same time, the possibilities for expansion within the existing, largely protected environment are limited.
The starting point of our proposal is the replacement of the current library building, which is the part of the conservatory which has the least historical value. The library itself will be transferred to Wolstraat nr. 11 with the courtyard behind as a new reading room. Together they form the central pivot point of the entire campus. The main staircase is also being restored. The new buildings include the largest new volumes, such as the chamber music hall and the rehearsal room for symphonic orchestra, a cafeteria that gives view to two courtyards, percussion rooms and masterclasses on different floors and a belvedere at the highest level overlooking the Brussels roof landscape.
The new building is determined by its context but is at the same time very contemporary. The orthogonality of Cluysenaar's conservatory building is consistently maintained in the floor plans, while it is delineated towards the courtyard by the diagonal plot line, a remainder of the former Allegerbenstraat.

Location
Brussels
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
9.000

Client
KCB - CRB, Beliris
Architect
SumProject (lead architect, renovation/restoration)
XDGA (new construction)
Xaveer De Geyter, Joffrey About, Pieter Coelis, Chloé de Salins, Mar Garrido, Emilia Ockerman, Matthias Van Rossen
Consultants
Barbara Van Der Wee Architecten (restoration)
SWEC (mechanics)
Daidalos (scoustics)
Ney&Partners (structure)
A-RES (Project management)
235

Hôtel des Archives
^[more]

Geneva

Civic

Competition

Competition

2018

8.500

The proposal questions in first instance the brief’s requirement to place the new archives of the City of Geneva underground. The Old Barrack’s site is, in fact, subject to the regular overflowing of the adjacent river and that would represent a great threat to the documents’ preservation.
The archives are thus stacked vertically and placed in the middle of the future garden; they rest on four black steel cruciform columns and are connected to the old building by a transparent pavilion.
This "bell tower", besides granting appropriate technical and climatic standards, ultimately assumes a symbolic meaning, as it values and exposes the city’s collective memory.
It does so by presenting itself as a slender, monolithic concrete volume wrapped by a transparent emergency staircase -which can also be used as a vertical promenade- and crowned by a publicly accessible roof terrace.
On the ground floor, the old aerial car park between the New Arsenal and the housing units will be completely transformed into a garden, accessible to the public but also accessible to housing and the city.
On the other hand, the interior spaces of the Arsenal are fully respected.
The entrance is at the level of the main central volume. It divides the plan into two parts: a north wing, accessible to the public, and a south wing which houses the restoration workshops. The library, exhibition hall, conference hall and access to the archives are therefore located in the north wing. The offices of the archivists and the director are concentrated on the first floor, above the reception, next to the garden. This allows independent access and simplified operation with Geneva state offices on both sides.

Location
Geneva
Type
Civic
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2018
Size (m²)
8.500

Client
Ville de Genève
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Antoine Chaudemanche, Rui Zenha de Pinho, Mar Garrido
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
234

Waterfront Park and Marina
^[more]

Vlora

Urban

Commission

Ongoing

2018–

373.500

If Vlora has one true potential hotspot, this is it. In the centre of the city’s coastline, at the end of the Boulevard and the Transbalkanike near starting point of the Vlora Waterfront Promenade lies a site with incredible potential. Currently a dead end – the closed off central port, the area should be the real front, the – international – face of the city of Vlora and the broader region. The Vlora Waterfront Promenade (Phase 1) has set in motion a much needed revival for Vlora’s waterfront. But in the centre of the 7 kilometre waterfront lies the real challenge for the promenade, and the city. How to create a continuous waterfront experience from east to west? How to develop an attractive neighbourhood in this former port area and remake the link between Vlora and the Mediterranean?
We believe that a project that combines the continuation of the promenade and an accessible water linked program can do the trick. Sheltered by the existing piers of the port, but with good access potential and situated in the magnificent bay of Vlora the main focus area shows enormous potential to house the first Vlora Marina. The Marine is fronted by both a new public park, and a private real estate development. Linked by a monumental gallery the projects unites ample public space and a unique waterfront development, making the most of the unique location in the centre of the city’s waterfront and surrounding the historical House of Independence.

Location
Vlora
Type
Urban
Procedure
Commission
Status
Ongoing
Year
2018–
Size (m²)
373.500

Client
Albanian Development Fund (ADF) and Marina di Valona sh.p.k.
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Joffrey About, Pieter Coelis, Ménélik Jobert, Jonathan Robert Maj, Emilia Ockerman, Dana Smetankova, Sophie Rouillère, Hannelore Thomas, Yannick Vergnaud
design development: Xaveer De Geyter, Pieter Coelis, with Lionel Bousquet, Pieter Coelis, Catherine Cornu, Chloé de Salins, Ménélik Jobert, Jacqueline de Souza Luduvice, Hanne Defloor, Morgan Delvaux, Karla Kovacevic, Jonathan Robert Maj, Léo Mazurek, Philip Niekamp, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Dana Smetankova, Marie-Pierre Vandeputte, Rui Zenha
implementation: Xaveer De Geyter, Pieter Coelis, with Catherine Cornu, Chloé de Salins, Jacqueline de Souza Luduvice, Marie Debraine, Karla Kovacevic, Jonathan Robert Maj, Léo Mazurek, Anne-Sophie Rouillère, Dana Smetankova
Consultants
iRI sh.p.k. (engineering)
Jeshile sh.p.k. (landscape)
Photos
XDGA
233

Drie Fonteinen
^[more]

Beersel

Commercial

Competition

Competition

2017

8.000

On a site along the canal in Beersel near Brussels, the Drie Fonteinen brewery consists of an existing cask hall that will be expanded with a new brewery and connected craft and production programs. The new volumes are radially arranged around the existing cask-hall. A large central public space offers a panoptic view of all the surrounding functions; these functions become vitrines around this new public space. A colonnade gallery extends into the industrial column structure of the new volumes and orders both landscape and buildings. The precedent of the monastic brewery, where landscape and built forms are part of an integrated whole, is here highly relevant. The brewery is designed as part of the wider municipality. The brewery acts as a lantern on the street side, the adjacent street is traffic-calmed and the masterplan integrates a collection of different public spaces. The newly planted orchard forms part of a walking route, from which one can catch a glimpse of the brewery’s activity and which leads to the multipurpose hall/café/tasting rooms that form the centre to the collection of buildings. The public space, in the heart of the plan, can serve as marketplace, events square, beer festival, etc.

Location
Beersel
Type
Commercial
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2017
Size (m²)
8.000

Client
Private
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Ménélik Jobert, Arie Gruijters, David Ampe, Emilia Ockerman
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
232

De Brouckère
^[more]

Brussels

Residential

Competition

Competition

2017

43.000

The urban fabric around the Place de Brouckère exists out of a historical juxta-position of varying existing urban structures. The proposed new city block is situated in between this structure and contains in its center a large cinema complex that has to remain.
We propose an urban model that is different from the neighboring structures, but has the capacity to adapt to the context. Thus, the project is clearly marked by its own identity and simultaneously it integrates easily with the existing situation. The proposal consists of a series of independent volumes with simple geometric shapes and varied heights.
The unevenness of the existing plot is addressed in the interstitial outer spaces. These spaces provide a visual and functional porosity to the whole island. Their use is of a collective nature, sometimes with public accessibility. The configuration allows for varied views from apartments as well as from the city. The notions of interior and exterior of the island disappear.
A variety of regular façade patterns, adapted to the specific programs, will ensure the homogeneity of the project. Inside these façade grids, windows, opaque fills or loggias are alternated. To ensure increased privacy of the housing, all private outdoor spaces will be loggias that can be closed.
The proposed urban model incorporates the notion of flexibility, both in the buildings and in the outdoor spaces. Most buildings can be simple adapted to be able to change their function, the use and status of outdoor spaces will be similarly flexible.

Location
Brussels
Type
Residential
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2017
Size (m²)
43.000

Client
BPI SA and IMMOBEL SA
Architect
XDGA – Xaveer De Geyter Architects
Xaveer De Geyter, Dana Vargovcíková, Therese Fritzell, Wouter Van Daele, Marie-Pierre Vandeputte
231

Maison de Médias
^[more]

Brussels

Commercial

Competition

Competition

2017

9.400

A new media district will be created on the former national television site at the border of the city of Brussels. Nowadays this site is somehow isolated from the rest of the neighbourhood, mainly because of the road infrastructure all around it. The future masterplan aims at opening up the site and turning it into a multi-functional campus, allowing it to become part of the surrounding city;
The new Media House, a combination of small institutions, start-ups, educational program and the tv channel BX1, is situated on the border of the media district site. It therefore has the potential to become the first hot spot and link between the city and the campus.
The building functions as an open public platform inserted in the sloping ground, connecting the level of the Boulevard Reyers to the media campus on the other side, 2.50 meters below. The main entrance, the restaurant and the auditorium help animating the public space of the immediate surroundings and on the covered plaza, where several activities can take place during day and night;
The different programs are stacked horizontally, allowing great flexibility; they meet through different types of connecting spaces, encouraging informal interaction between different users. The building is fully glazed; showing the animation happening on the inside. For technical reasons, the tv studios don’t require any opening to the outside. This part of the program is positioned in a black box on the top floors, creating a strong identity for the building. One large window allows the tv studios to have a permanent view onto Brussels’ skyline.

Location
Brussels
Type
Commercial
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2017
Size (m²)
9.400

Client
Société d’Aménagement Urbain / Maatschappij voor Stedelijke Inrichting
Architect
XDGA – Xaveer De Geyter Architects
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Elena Caruso, Antoine Chaudemanche, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Johan Cool, Lieven De Boeck, Jacqueline Luduvice de Souza, Ménélik Jobert, Emilia Ockerman, Greta Torsello
Consultants
Inside Outside (landscape)
Util (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (mechanics)
Daidalos-Peutz (acoustics)
City Tools (urbanism)
Securisan (security)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
227

Prado
^[more]

Marseille

Urban

Competition

Competition

2017

780

The project is conceived in the context of the 13th edition of the Manifesta Biennale, that took place in Marseille.
The site is the one of the Square Prado, a central location at the intersection of two major axes of the city.
Tackling the scale, geometry and significance of the square itself, the work, consisting of three circular rows of flag poles, materialises and at the same time frees up the Square.
At a height of 20 meters, the flag poles mediate between the neighbouring buildings’ roof lines and the trees’ foliage; each pole carries a 4x6m sports fabric flag that exalts Marseille’s specific climatic conditions and, more specifically, the presence of the Mistral.
The 43 colours utilised, which belong to the Pantone scale, are the colours needed to reproduce the flags of all nationalities and are categorised in relation to the different parts of the city they address: the reds are facing the city centre, the blues are looking towards the Sea, the greens towards the park etc. At the centre is a white flag, synthesis of all colours.
Ultimately, the work aims at questioning the symbolism attached to National flags and at celebrating unity within diversity.

Location
Marseille
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2017
Size (m²)
780

Client
Métrpole Aix-Marseille-Provence
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Antoine Chaudemanche, Lieven De Boeck, Lionel Bousquet
Consultants
Bollinger + Grohmann (stability)
Michel Desvigne Paysagiste (landscape)
Atelier Roland Jeol (lighting)
Studio Lieven De Boeck (artistic direction)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
225

Masterplan SANI
^[more]

Bologna

Urban

Competition

Competition

2017

70.000

This international design competition addressed the conversion of the former SANI Barracks site in Bologna into a mix of public and private open spaces and primarily residential buildings.
The former SANI Barracks is a decommissioned military complex situated in the Navile neighbourhood, north of the historic centre of Bologna. The barracks once produced foodstuffs for the army and after the Second World War served principally as a storage depot. The object of the competition is a comprehensive masterplan providing proposals for the successive phase of operational planning. In detail, the objective is to identify a design proposal that respects the content of the listed heritage, the complex planning legislation and to define an urban structure for the renewal of the site.
In contrast with the existing situation, XDGA’s proposal is to organize the entire new building program in the form of a square inside the former enclave. This simple gesture brings a new order to the buildings’ configuration and allows for an intensive coexistence between the old and the new. The square marks a clear separation between the central public space that it surrounds and a series of collective and private spaces situated towards the outskirts of the site; The square becomes a centre for a larger public area, contains all commercial and public functions and is connected with the surroundings through a set of spatial links. The new buildings have three different heights; ranging from two story high buildings, buildings that have the same height as the existing ones and one tower that functions as a landmark to the surrounding environment.

Location
Bologna
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2017
Size (m²)
70.000

Client
CDP Investment
Architect and landscape
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Elena Caruso, Johan Cool, Jacqueline Luduvice de Souza, Federico Pedrini
Consultants
MATE Engineering (structure)
Restoration ZAA (restoration)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
224

Pescatore
^[more]

Luxembourg

Residential

Competition

Competition

2017–2019

16.500

Established on the site of the former Fort Berlaimont, the Foundation has offered a high quality of life to 348 people since 1892. The new building of the Residence will be positioned to the east of the central wing, in order to create a visual link with the Kirchberg plateau and the upper town. While offering a great view of the landscape to each of the units, the intervention also recreates a functional garden courtyard to the west, thus recovering some of the original qualities of the park.
Three main concepts are at the basis of the architectural choices of the new building: 'small worlds', inhabited passageways and garden delivery yard.
Typological research has focused on a dual approach: the perception of space by residents, coupled with the efficiency that a care facility should have. The result consists of apartments that can easily be appropriated by the inhabitants, in order to create their "little world".
The inhabited passageway offers a glazed and bright environment, with multiple views of the garden courtyard. The passageway is completed by plants, flowers, a chair, an armchair. The space of a possible meeting, the space of a small collective, the space of the neighborhood.
The architectural intervention is ultimately in continuity with the existing built environment and manages to complement the strong identity of the original 1892 'Refuge'.

Location
Luxembourg
Type
Residential
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2017–2019
Size (m²)
16.500

Client
Fondation J.P. Pescatore
Architects
XDGA- Xaveer De Geyter
Therése Fritzell, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Hanne Defloor

SNCDA
Sara Noel Costa De Araujo, Fani Bihr, Hadrien de Riemaecker, Kaat Volckaert, Camille Pons
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
215

*

Nantes ARC
^[more]

Nantes

Residential

Commission

Built

2016

22.500

The project consists of three terraced towers standing on a plinth. The shape and positioning of each tower is the result of parameters such as optimal orientation, maximum privacy and multiplication of views towards the surroundings. The lowest volume contains the offices, while the two higher ones contain the housing program. A great deal of attention is reserved to the ground floors, in order to ensure the best integration possible into the context. On the west side, in fact, the dwellings are organised as duplex apartments, screened by a green canopy made possible by the building’s setback, while on the east side the offices’ common facilities (lobby, cafeteria, gym) animate the street. Roof-terraces and hanging gardens moreover facilitate the interactions amongst the inhabitants and offer splendid views towards the landscape.
The homogeneous treatment of the façade and the rational structural principle organising the plan furthermore respond to principles of long-term flexibility: the conversion of offices into housing is therefore possible, as is the combination of different dwelling types.
The minimum built footprint of the intervention ultimately allows for the preservation and planting of an important volume of high trees that help integrating the site in the existing landscape structure of the island, while the towers themselves become part of the new skyline of the city’s riverside.

Location
Nantes
Type
Residential
Procedure
Commission
Status
Built
Year
2016
Size (m²)
22.500

client
groupe ARC
architects
XDGA- Xaveer De Geyter Architects
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Pierre Burquel, Wouter van Daele
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Wouter van Daele, with Pierre Burquel, Paul-Emmanuel Lambert, Foucault Tiberghien, Yannick Vergnaud
implementation: Xaveer De Geyter, Wouter van Daele, with Lionel Bousquet, Solène Le Gallo, Simon Vellut
consultants
Mabire-Reich (co-contractor, building permit)
Oteis-Isateg (structure, mechanics)
Veritas (technical control)
Ubi-City (BREEAM)
Serea (soil pollution)
photos
Maxime Delvaux
211

Campus Santé
^[more]

Lausanne

Education

Competition

Competition

2015–2016

8.800

For a long time, the outskirts of Lausanne, on a slope down towards the Lac Leman, were considered as a landscape in which new projects could be implemented without major consequences. Today this periphery is so invaded that it has become semi-city, unfortunately marked by the absence of any notion of urbanity. Typically, ‘nature’ is only the background of buildings.
In this competition for a vast program of paramedical schools and student housing, the attempt is to engage the unbuilt not as residual space yet as a generator for urbanity. On a narrow stretch of sloping land a succession of courts is proposed, interconnected in between them and eventually opening up towards the outside. Stairs, passages, porches and elevated buildings allow for these connections. According to their function and localization, the courts are developed as a square, a sports field, a garden or an orchard. A central square, where different programs come together, and where most publicly accessible programs are concentrated on the ground floor, is covered with a transparent awning. The urban system may be continued beyond the program of the competition towards the future housing program to the north.
It guarantees a strong coherence while allowing for both spatial and programmatic variation.
Articulation of the specific places, expression of the different identities, orientation and rhythm of the courts are the factors that help to specify the facades. All buildings are entirely clad in glass: different kinds of coloured glass for the opaque parts, mirrored, translucent or clear glass for the windows.

Location
Lausanne
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2015–2016
Size (m²)
8.800

Client
Etat de Vaud, DFIRE, SIPAL
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Lieven De Boeck, Guillaume Bostoen, Pierre Burquel, Emilia Ockerman, Diana Pantera, Federico Pedrini, Yago Ryosuke, Yuichiro Suzuki, Matthias Van Rossen, Yannick Vergnaud
Consultants
ZPF (structure)
ZPF (mechanics)
Sorane SA (sustainability)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
210

Learning and Innovation Centre
^[more]

Brussels

Education

Competition

Competition

2016

8.800

After decades of doubt about their redundancy, libraries have nowadays increasingly become in their nature ‘public spaces’. The ambition of this project is no less than to transform a backyard area in between two adjacent university campuses into a central pivot, a public hotspot for both, providing space for informal meeting as well as for studious concentration. The idea here is to bring together the notion of ‘connection’ and the physical program of a ‘learning center’ in a single movement.
A perfect cube is meticulously implanted in the complex topography of the site. It has a hollow core that functions as an outside foyer and that links the different programs with the campus. The campus street, the university esplanade and a landscaped hill are three elements on different levels that are connected through a monumental staircase.
The compact volume has a minimal footprint. It has entrances on three sides and the facade system with alternating open and closed vertical strips guarantees a certain intimacy to the outdoor space and great flexibility to the interior. Interruptions of the strips mark all entrances, terraces and special features inside.

Location
Brussels
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2016
Size (m²)
8.800

^Client
Beliris, VUB, ULB
^Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Pierre Burquel, Elena Caruso, Hanne Defloor, Paul-Emmanuel Lambert, Cristian Panaïté, Federico Pedrini, Wouter van Daele
^Consultants
Werner Sobek (structure)
RCR (mechanics)
Michel Desvigne Paysagiste (landscape)

^Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen
205

Congress Centre
^[more]

Charleroi

Cultural

Competition, 1st Prize

Discontinued

2015

11.000

The project seeks to be part of the political will to renew the image of Charleroi, to renovate its historic center, to insert its institutions in a new dynamic for the coming century. Vector image and identity for Charleroi, the future ensemble comprising of the Palais des Beaux Arts and the new Congress Center is also an opportunity to set new standards for this kind of equipment.
The aesthetics of the project are treated as the result of the program. The project is built on the rationality of uses, the response to the program and the urban integration of it. The project will then be able to host events ranging from a few tens of participants to several thousand, have a single event in all the rooms or simultaneously several stand-alone events. The rationality of the plan ultimately guarantees the readability of each of the spaces.

Location
Charleroi
Type
Cultural
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Discontinued
Year
2015
Size (m²)
11.000

Client
Ville de Charleroi - Igretec
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Antoine Chaudemanche, Paul Emmanuel Lambert
Consultants
Greisch (structure)
Boydens Studiebureau (mechanics)
Peutz (acoustics)
Duck (scenography)
Radiance 35 (lighting)
203

Ginder - Ale Brewery
^[more]

Merchtem

Residential

Competition, 1st Prize

Discontinued

2016

16.000

The competition was organised to refurbish the former brewery building of Ginder-Ale as a multifunctional complex situated in the centre of the village of Merchtem.
The existing monumental building will be stripped down to its impressive concrete structure and will host commercial activities, a car parking, a public function and at the top level housing of varying size and typology.
The presence of the built volume in the surroundings will change from a completely closed and introverted block to towards an open structure containing different programs.
By removing the closed brick façade and inserting a publicly accessible balcony, the building will establish a new relationship with the centre of Merchtem.

Location
Merchtem
Type
Residential
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Discontinued
Year
2016
Size (m²)
16.000

Client
Aura Estates
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Karel Bruyland, Elena Caruso, Lieven De Boeck, Hanne Defloor, Arie Gruijters, Cristian Panaïté, Valentin Piret, Yanick Vergnaud
Consultants
Ney & Partners (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (mechanics)
202

Residence P24
^[more]

Palaiseau

Residential

Commission

Built

2015–2018

150.200

Lot P24 is part of the Saclay ISO. The P2 zone represents the heart of the future district of the École Polytechnique. Located in the central strip, it will host the Palaiseau station of the future line 18 of the Grand Paris metro. The P2.4 plot faces the Institut Supérieur Mines Télécom, one of the main educational buildings in the central strip. Lot P2.4 houses student accommodation (408 beds), a hotel residence (110 beds) as well as 1600m2 of shops and a public car park with 140 spaces. The layout of the building is regulated by a 4.50m high plinth along which the shops and main entrances are arranged. The two main programs (student residence in R + 6 and hotel in R + 7) develop in a superstructure. The student residence adopts an “S” shape of constant thickness from north to south of the plot. The hotel is located on the northeast corner. The two buildings maintain a dialogue through a set of facades with dominant vertical or horizontal depending on the configuration. An interior patio is shared by the two programs and the student residence also has a private patio. The materials used in facades are: enameled brick, black tinted prefabricated concrete and aluminum / wood joinery.

Location
Palaiseau
Type
Residential
Procedure
Commission
Status
Built
Year
2015–2018
Size (m²)
150.200

Client
Bouygues Immobilier
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects), FAA (Floris Alkemade Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Lionel Bousquet, Jérémie Brault, Antoine Chaudemanche, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Mathilde Dutilleul, Felix Forthmeijer, Ménélik Jobert, Solène Le Gallo, Paul Emmanuel Lambert, Foucault Tiberghien, Yannick Vergraud, Simon Vellut
Consultants
Michel Desvigne Paysagiste (landscape)
200

*

MBAT
^[more]

Tournai

Cultural

Competition, 1st Prize

Ongoing

2015–

9.370

Since its construction from 1913 to 1928 the existing museum by Art Nouveau architect Victor Horta was never adapted to today’s standards for conservation and display of old artworks. The collection ranges from 15th century art up to contemporary art of that period. The competition demand was to realise this transformation and to build an extension to it. In order to meet these climatic standards much of the architectural quality of the building would be lost. The daylight factor would have to be diminished by 90%, as all roofs are made in glass. Isolating the building would endanger its geometry and the panoptic plan would have to be divided into compartments.
For these reasons, a controversial strategy consisting of two parts is chosen.
First of all, it was decided to accentuate the public nature of Horta's central space while the turtle's 'legs' remain exhibition spaces for works that require a lower climatic standard. The second is to inhabit the entire interstitial space between the museum and the surrounding houses with a new exhibition ‘field’ that matches all the requirements.
Doing so means that the museum can get rid of its rather hermetic position in the city. Non-museum related activities can happen in the central space, while the main entrance to the museum, its ticket shop, bookshop and cafeteria are organised here as well. The ‘legs’ are integrated in an exhibition trajectory, alternating between old and new. The permanent exhibition makes use of an orthogonal grid of new walls, the former garden walls and the exterior brick wall of the Horta building for the display of the collection. For temporary exhibitions a small cube consisting of 3 floors is added to the new layout.

Location
Tournai
Type
Cultural
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Ongoing
Year
2015–
Size (m²)
9.370

Client
City of Tournai
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Guillaume Bostoen, Lieven De Boeck, Paul Emmanuel Lambert, Federico Pedrini, David Verbeeck, Stéphanie Willocx
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Federico Pedrini, with David Ampe, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Lieven De Boeck, Marie Debraine, Arie Gruijters, Jacqueline Luduvice, Anne- Sophie Rouillère, Willem Van Besien, Stéphanie Willocx
Consultants
Barbara Van Der Wee (restoration)
Ney & Partners (structure)
Ingenium (mechanics)
Daidalos (sustainability)
Kascen (scenography)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
197

't Zand
^[more]

Bruges

Urban

Competition

Competition

2015

22.300

The streets and public squares of the centre of Bruges retain a remarkable harmony with their buildings. However, the square ‘t Zand’, situated on the border of the inner city, is an exception to this rule and presents itself as a large empty space with no real relation to the surrounding buildings. Only the concert hall at the southern edge of the space is somewhat related to the scale of the square. The square is intensely used by a variety of large scale activities that create a lively, functional and essential part of the city. In order to keep this functional quality to its maximum, one should provide the space with a focus point, a ‘place-mark’, instead of strengthening the spatial definition of it borders. This place-mark creates a counterpoint to the spatial emptiness of the square and locates a meeting for when the square is used.
At the north side of the square we propose a circular, translucent canopy, the same width as the square. This object; a round bowl with a circular oculus in the middle, functions as both a sheltering roof and as a waterfall. The reflection of the water, the play of light and shadow, defines an everchanging atmosphere and experience. The object itself is as immaterial as possible; a translucent fabric suspended below a series of concentric rings which catch the rainwater into a cascade that flows gently towards the central waterfall opening. At the level of the square additional fountains are foreseen, their change in flow and ebb providing a constant varying play of water. The new fountain canopy becomes a point of attraction which allows the inhabitation of the empty vastness of the square and creates opportunities for different activities and appropriations.

Location
Bruges
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2015
Size (m²)
22.300

Client
City of Bruges
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, David Ampe, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Lieven De Boeck, Joris De Greef, Leo Ferretto, Michel Sikorski, Willem Van Besien, David Verbeeck
Consultants
Ney & Partners (structure)
195

*

Melopee School
^[more]

Ghent

Education

Competition, 1st Prize

Built

2015–2020

7.680

In the harbour area a narrow stretch of land along a dock is freed from port activities. A very simple ‘chop stick’ urban plan is developed by O.M.A. in which green open pockets alternate with dense construction. In order to offer a notion of centrality to the linear plan, a public path is meant to cross the whole strip. The site for the school faces one green area at its south side, the dock on its west side, a square and a housing block on the north and the harbour road on the east. The requested program for the building, a combination of a primary school, an after school care centre, a nursery and sports facilities for both the school and its neighbourhood, is diverse and extensive. On top it requires a great deal of specific outside playgrounds. In order to counter the lack of space, deal with the inside-outside complexity of programs and allow for the public path to pass, the maximum building envelope is divided in two halves: one compact building housing all interior functions, and an outside space in which the playgrounds are stacked. In between both, and under a first level playground realized in glass tiles, the path crosses the volume.
A galvanized steel skeleton unifies the two halves. On the side of the interior volume, the façades of the building are designed as a patchwork of opaque and translucent polycarbonate, glass, and aluminium louvres. The outside structure will be overgrown with vegetation climbing along a steel mesh, in which some large ‘windows’ are cut out.

Location
Ghent
Type
Education
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Built
Year
2015–2020
Size (m²)
7.680

Client
sogent
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Doug Allard, Thérese Fritzell, Ingrid Huyghe, Willem Van Besien, Stéphanie Willocx
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Karel Bruyland, Thérese Fritzell, Arie Gruijters, Ingrid Huyghe, Willem Van Besien, Stéphanie Willocx
implementation: Xaveer De Geyter, Ingrid Huyghe, Willem Van Besien
Consultants
Ney & Partners (structure)
Studiebureau Boydens (mechanical)
Daidalos Peutz ingenieursbureau (acoustics)
Photos
Maxime Delvaux
Awards
Brussels Architecture Prize 2021, Category 'Extra Muros', winner, for Melopee School, Ghent, Belgium
Bigmat Award '21, Grand International Prize, for Melopee School, Ghent, Belgium
188

Museum for natural History and City Archives
^[more]

Basel

Cultural

Competition

Competition

2014

12.000

This competition is a real challenge on how to combine the two programs – the Basel City Archive and the Museum for Natural History - in such a way that they interact maximally with the public realm of the surrounding city. The two main restrictions in order to do so are the long, small and irregular shaped building site along a railroad track and the majority of the program that does not allow direct daylight to enter the building.
We propose one building volume containing both programs. The building is designed as a horizontal skyscraper perfectly adapting to the restrictions of the site. The delivery zone is situated underground, the tower volume works as a plinth along the street that becomes a gradually stepped tower at the south side. This composition combines a strong identity with a volumetric articulation towards the Entenwidstrasse.
The building is mainly a closed volume. On the street side however, a long volume is cut out. Here, a glass façade allows visual contact between the publicly accessible program of the building and the street. This cut-out continues through the building, rises on one side to the level of the adjacent bridge, while on the opposite side descending towards the lowest level. This canyon through the building provides physical access to the museum and the archives and creates a visual interaction with the string of public parts of the museum and the archives. Behind a glass façade unfolds a series of public functions: the reading room of the city archives, the auditorium, the foyer with the entrance, and the exhibition space in the section above, the cafeteria, the forum, the museum library and museum shop at the lower level. Many visual links are created showing the internal activities of the two programs both from the inside as well as towards the street.
The largest part of the building is covered with rolled steel, protected from corrosion with a matt, transparent PUR paint. Only the cut-out at the street side is as transparent and light as possible. The offices are in dark limousine glass. The steel-blue colour scheme of the closed volume is in strong contrast with the crystal clear glass of the façade of the cut-out and the polished, light-reflective sheet steel for the ceiling of the canyon.

Location
Basel
Type
Cultural
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2014
Size (m²)
12.000

Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Wouter van Daele, Michael Smith, Arie Gruijters, Beatrice Colaiacomo, Paul-Emmanuel Lambert
186

Kalvebod District West
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Kalvebod

Urban

Competition

Competition

2014

325.000

Copenhagen is growing at approximately 1,000 people per month. There is a great demand for housing, particularly close to the centre of Copenhagen. At the same time it experiences an increasing desire to stay close to green recreational areas, especially for families with children. There is every reason to believe that the neighbourhood of Kalvebod West, t of the commons and the subway, offers an attractive combination of the two with the desire that the area will be fully developed and inhabited within the foreseeable future. Conversely, we learned later in 2008 that circumstances can change rapidly. The development may periodically stop and demand may change along the way. It is therefore essential that the plan is both robust enough to function throughout development, while it is flexible enough to adapt to changes in demand, for example of housing types, activities or functions throughout the development. Our approach to flexibility and robustness is based on three principles: 1. A clear physical structure variations, 2. Flexibility in development, 3. Various options

Location
Kalvebod
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition
Status
Competition
Year
2014
Size (m²)
325.000

Client
By og Havn
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
Xaveer De Geyter, Tobias Labarque, Antoine Chaudemanche, Sara Noel Costa de Araujo, Frederic Rasier, Vincent Cellier, Lieven De Boeck
Consultants
Shønherr A/S (landscape)
Alectia A/S (structure, MEP - sustainability)
Anne Katrine Hornemann (urban strategies)
182

*

Waterfront Promenade
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Vlora

Urban

Competition, 1st Prize

Built

2014–2016

800.000

The Vlora coastline profits from spectacular views towards the bay and the Karaburun peninsula. However, it remained a neglected and derelict area for a long time. After an era of notoriously rigorous socialist regime, a spirit of unrestrained liberalism took over. The ambition of this project is to give a common interest back to the city. A major public space is to transcend the multitude of private developments next to having the potential of becoming a catalyst for a new tourism economy and triggering an urban renaissance. Over a long stretch of 8 kilometres the topography changes from a wooded horizontal landscape to a steep sloping surface that leaves with hardly any space for road and leisure infrastructure. Equally, the urban condition evolves from a peripheral situation to a city center that is blocked off by a secured harbour area, towards a thin stretch of coastline buildings. This multitude of conditions is ‘countered’ by a continuous promenade that meanders between the waterline and the road, and that is raised over the harbour. From that starting point a square, a park, beaches, wooded beaches, sports fields, swimming pools are being developed as well as a new road, the first cycling path in Vlora, terraces on the buildings side, and parking infrastructure. Between the square and the park, a circular concrete island faces the stairs that lead to the water level. Twice a day it disappears under the waterline. The promenade is accompanied by a local pine tree, planted irregularly across the path. Wherever possible existing elements such as a row of palm trees are integrated in the plan.
So far 3.8 kilometres have been executed. The next kilometre with external swimming pools to the south end is to come soon. A marina next to the harbour is furthermore being studied, together with a new park linking the central city boulevard to the sea.

Location
Vlora
Type
Urban
Procedure
Competition, 1st Prize
Status
Built
Year
2014–2016
Size (m²)
800.000

Client
Albania Development Fund
Architect
XDGA (Xaveer De Geyter Architects)
competition: Xaveer De Geyter, Pierre Burquel, Pieter Coelis, Mathilde Dutilleul, Wouter van Daele
definitive design: Xaveer De Geyter, Pieter Coelis, with Pierre Burquel, Elena Caruso, Mathilde Dutilleul, Wouter Van Daele, Rui Zenha
implementation: Xaveer De Geyter, Pieter Coelis
Consultants
IRD Engineering (structure)
IRD Engineering (techniques)
MetroPOLIS (local architect)
Symbiotica (local implementation)
Photos
XDGA-Matthias Van Rossen