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  COME VEDERE L'ARCHITETTURA CONTEMPORANEA HOW TO SEE CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE
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BUILDING
 
 
Le Toison d’Or
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DESIGNER
 
 
UNStudio
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DESCRIPTION
 
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Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, BruxellesDesigned for ProWinko and in collaboration with Belgian architects Jaspers-Eyers, Le Toison d’Or is a hybridisation of a traditional building-block typology and a mixed-use development with a retail podium.

Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, BruxellesLocated on the Avenue de la Toison d'Or between two historical gates (the Porte Louise and the Port de Namur), the mixed-use complex integrates into the urban fabric of its surroundings, whilst simultaneously merging a retail and residential programme.



Le Toison d'Or contains 72 apartments (from 50 to 750 m2), 13,000 m2 of commercial space, a 1040 m2 crèche, 330 parking spaces and an elevated city garden of 2,950 m2.

In order to avoid the monolithic qualities common to block structures, the façade of Le Toison d’Or is broken up by means of variations in texture, depth and the repeating rhythm of a series of curved vertical frames. These frames serve to enclose the balconies of the apartments on the upper floors, whilst also facilitating the large display windows of the retail units.
Ben van Berkel:
Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, Bruxelles“It was important that the retail units be as open and light and possible. We wanted to contrast this with the apparent solidity of the upper floors, to create the illusion that the vertical balloon-like frames were carrying the building; as if the whole block almost has the potential float above the avenue.”

“In architecture we tend to favour abstraction and to avoid figuration. But on the street facade of the Toison d’Or building we wanted to investigate the space between the abstract and the figurative, to create moments of tacit allusion to the pictorial.”
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Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, BruxellesIn contrast to the vertical articulation of the street facade, the facades surrounding the elevated courtyard garden follow a horizontal arrangement. Here generously proportioned balconies provide a more tranquil experience of city life.

Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, BruxellesTo access the apartments visitors and residents enter the building from the street side, where a large sculptural staircase leads them up to the main reception lobby, which is located towards the rear and elevated above the two retail levels. From here they can continue to further lobby areas furnished with informal seating, where the elevators to the apartments are also located.

The apartments in Le Toison d’Or vary in size from small to large, enabling a varied demographic of city residents. To ensure high levels of daylight in the interiors, the floor to ceiling heights reach at least 2.7 meters in living areas. For the apartments situated along the Avenue de la Toison d’Or, this height increases to more than 3 meters. Open kitchens in the form of large furniture elements create an informal entertaining space in the heart of the apartments and determine the circulation through the spaces.
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VIDEO
 
 
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ECO-SUSTAINABILITY
 
Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, BruxellesLe Toison d’Or has been developed with high standards of sustainability. Main features are the excellent thermic isolation of the façade (including triple glazing), a high standard of acoustic insulation, an inventive cogeneration installation system for both the apartments and the retail units and the use of glass-fiber reinforced concrete.
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LOCATION
 
Continent
Europe
Nation
Belgium [Belgique/België]
Region
Brussels [Bruxelles/Brussel]
Town
Brussels [Bruxelles/Brussel]
Address
Avenue de la Toison d’Or 25-29 (rue des Chevaliers, rue des Drapiers)
 
 
Website
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MAP
 
 
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TYPOLOGY
 
Main
ARCHITECTURE
Residential buildings
Multiple dwelling
Buildings for offices and professional practises
Offices
Commercial buildings
Shops
Additional
ARCHITECTURE
Transport buildings and structures
Garages, car parking, etc.
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CHRONOLOGY
 
Project
2009    
Realisation
2016
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CLIENT
 
 
TD Immo Invest BVBA, Brussels
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DIMENSIONAL
DATA
 
Surface
site sq.m. 5,800
building sq.m. 48,000

commercial space sq.m. 13,000
kindergarten sq.m. 1,040
city garden sq.m.2,950
Floors
9
Volume
total m³ 197,000
above ground m³ 87,000
underground m³ 110,000
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STRUCTURES
 
 
ABCIS Van Wetter S.A.
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LANDSCAPE DESIGN
 
 
Lodewijk Baljon landschapsarchitecten
Atelier Ruimtelijk Advies
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STAFF
 
Associate designers
Jaspers-Eyers Architects
Design team
Ben van Berkel, Gerard Loozekoot
with Wesley Lanckriet, Jacques van Wijk and Hans Kooij, Tina Kortmann, Tatjana Gorbachewskaja, Philipp Meise, Jaap-Willem Kleijwegt, Marie Prunault, Tomas Mokry, Nanang Santoso, Olivier Yebra, Thomas Harms, Rene Wysk, Todd Ebeltoft, Patrick Noome, Charlotte Guyaux, Johanna Mencia, Machiel Wafelbakker, Bartek Winnicki, Aurelie Krotoff, Ondrei Kyjanek, Wendy van der Knijff
Architect of record
Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Brussels (BE)
Executive architect
Wesley Lanckriet
U/Define Architects
Structural consultant
ABCIS Van Wetter S.A., Brussels (BE)
Landscape design
Lodewijk Baljon landschapsarchitecten, Amsterdam (NL)
Atelier Ruimtelijk Advies, Berchem (BE)
Systems
Techniplan adviseurs, Rotterdam (NL)
TDEC, Rumst (BE)
Physical engineering
DGMR, Arnhem (NL)
Sustainability
DGMR, Arnhem (NL)
Quantity surveyor
BBN adviseurs, Houten (NL)
Widnell Europe, Brussels (BE)
Fire safety
FPC Fire Protection Consultants, Antwerpen (BE)
Quality control
SECO, Brussels (BE)
General contractor
CFE NV – BPC Brabant, Watermaal-Bosvoorde (BE)
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CREDITS
 
 
Photos © Hufton+Crow, Eva Bloem
Drawings © UNStudio, Ben van Berkel
Text edited by UNStudio
Courtesy of UNStudio

Ben van Berkel, UNStudio, Jaspers-Eyers Architects, Le Toison d’Or, Brussels, Bruxelles



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