Zonnehuis Reimagined: A Spatial Negotiation of The Monument
A. Tian (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
C.H.J. de Vries – Mentor (TU Delft - Heritage & Architecture)
L.G.K. Spoormans – Mentor (TU Delft - Heritage & Architecture)
A.S.C. Meijer – Mentor (TU Delft - Teachers of Practice / AE+T)
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Abstract
The project explores how an alternative narrative of monumental heritage can be proposed. As part of a broader discourse on the renovation of 20th-century heritage, the project focuses on the Zonnehuis — a civic monument located in Amsterdam North.
The renovation addresses the tension between authorized heritage and everyday experience. The new intervention introduces elements of daily life into a structure that historically symbolizes authority, while preserving its monumental significance. This negotiation takes place in the spatial interface where authority and everyday life intersect. These tensions are articulated across both tangible and intangible layers.
By proposing the narrative themes of Deliberative Democracy, Creative Emancipation, and Civic Ritual, the project introduces a range of creative and communal spaces on either side of the building. These spaces enable civic issues and histories to be actively negotiated, while the renovated event hall and gallery spaces serve to present them to the wider public. The overall aim is to reclaim the building as a platform for democratic civic participation.
In addition, drawing from Stewart Brand’s Shearing Layers theory and Rigel’s Heritage Value Set, the project introduces a new evaluation framework to guide design decisions. This framework acts as an experimental tool for optimizing renovation strategies by intentionally evaluating both the original and transformed values within a clear theoretical structure.