The project in Belle-ile (Liège) is an extension of an existing shopping center. This shopping center is located between 2 waterways, the river Ourthe and the ‘Canal de l’Ourthe’, which flow into the Meuse a little further. It is a former industrial site that has grown into an urban green space a stone’s throw from the center. The place is popular for shopping, but is also located on the famous RAVeL that runs along the Ourthe. In that regard, it is also an important destination for leisure activities such as cycling, hiking and simply enjoying nature. The Canal de l’Ourthe is now a Natura 2000 site, with beavers resurfacing.
The actual shopping center is a typical peripheral shopping center from the 1990s. It consists of a late post-modern, introverted volume that stands above an enormous parking lot. The footprint of the existing building is approximately 35,000 m² and can be seen as 3 different, unmixed layers: 35,000 m2 of parking on the ground floor, 35,000 m2 of shopping center on level +1 and finally 35,000 m2 of unused roof.
The Spanish office of Francisco Mangado, in partnership with the Belgian archipelago I baev studio, has won the first prize in the international competition for the construction of a new Exhibition and Convention Hall in Liège (BE).
An exhibition ground like this, object of this competition, possesses -in addition to the character of public equipment and services- an institutional dimension, by converting an architectural problem in a magnificent opportunity to transform the immediate urban environment as well as to improve the city, seen as an architectural reference. We are not facing the construction of a simple building, but rather than to one of those opportunities that, sometimes, undertake the city and its inhabitants, thus forging urban history. For us, this is the only way, an unequaled perspective to approach this project. We are not just realizing a building, we are setting up a part of the city.
Programmes of this type are notorious for producing mundane buildings – devoid of interest at best, and often outright urbicide. Our vision goes beyond the mere cosmetic upgrade of the decorated shed, asking: How can the designers of a supermarket quietly succeed in weaving part of the urban fabric?
Team: (MDW) Marie Moignot, Xavier De Wil, Ludovic Raquet, Gilles Debrun, Jérôme Elleboudt, Kristof Van Den Berghe, Yvan Breithof, Thomas Gillet,; (H+G) Charles Herfurth, Guillaume De Ghellinck, Henry Lebrun, François Denayer, Tanguy van Cutsem, Marie-Eve Delfosse
Mechanical Engineer: DTS
Structural Engineer: SETESCO
Contractor: BCDG (Temporary association BERNARD CONSTRUCTION – DONNAY-GOFFIN – CORDEEL)
Reinterpreting the loft
The Kempart loft project emerged from a meeting between Daniel Dethier and a client, who was passionate about precision engineering. It demonstrates how industrial spaces can be transformed into housing without becoming locked into stereotypes.
Detail and accuracy
We were fortunate to have a committed and receptive client who was fascinated by precision engineering. This allowed us to apply our research into a loft’s reinterpretation, and to integrate a technically advanced architectural object. Our approach was, quite naturally, based on the client’s profile rather than the site’s historical nature – as it does not present any heritage value whatever.
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