Ecca collection

Amstelveen Theater tower

While both bigger and better - in terms of functionality - than the original 1975 edifice it replaces, the newly restored Amstelveen Theater tower is perhaps most remarkable for its shimmering golden façade, which is pimpled with regularly positioned, 13cm-deep hydroformed hemispheres.

Images courtesy of Jannes Linders

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Swedish Pavilion - Shangai Expo

Designing the Swedish Pavilion at the 2010 Shanghai Expo was a slightly less daunting task than designing many of the other pavilions, because it had a clearly defined function. What makes these projects so difficult in general is the almost entirely open-ended nature of the brief – they have to convey something about the national character, and house an exhibition, but beyond that and the physical limitations of the site, it is possible to do anything. In the case of the Swedish Pavilion, however, there was at least a requirement to house meetings with potential trade partners, and this gave the design more of a functional programme than is customary.

Images courtesy of August Wiklund, Sweco, & Petter Eldin

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Multifunctional Centre Hart van Meerdervoort

When the municipalities of Zwijndrecht and Trivire in the south of the Netherlands decided to create a multifunctional centre for the Kort Ambacht Zuid neighbourhood, they initially specified a brick-clad structure. Set on an elongated site, the building needed to accommodate an elementary school, a gym, childcare centre, welfare organisation, and local housing association.

© Dion de Bakker Fotografie

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