In pictures: Spui Campus opens its doors on Architecture Day
On Architecture Day, residents of The Hague had the chance to take a look inside Spui Campus. The event offered an informal introduction to the new building, which officially opened earlier this year.
Visitors saw how the former V&D department store on Spui has been transformed into a modern space for research, teaching and connection. Spui Campus is a unique location in the centre of The Hague, where Leiden University, Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Open University, the LUMC and Universities of the Netherlands work together to address today’s challenges in areas such as security, governance, law, health and patient care.
The story behind the transformation
During popular guided tours, architects from LIAG and Sweco Architects explained the building’s unique redevelopment, from a department store into a university campus. ‘Spui Campus is a building in the centre of The Hague that has been developed, adapted and transformed over more than a century. One of the visitors remembered the original arcade that closed in the early 1960s. It really brings the history of our built environment to life, and that history lives on in people’s stories’, said Thomas Bögl, an architect at LIAG.
Alongside the guided tours, the programme also gave the public a glimpse into the research and teaching, through lectures, talks and other activities. These ranged from designing your own floating city with TU Delft to talks on fashion and identity by Tom Giesbers (Open University) and on Europe and the Dutch economy by Rik Rozendaal (Leiden University). In the workshop on heat-resilient homes by Alessandra Luna Navarro (TU Delft), participants learned how architecture and building design can contribute to a comfortable and healthy indoor climate.
-
‘From Department Store to Knowledge Store’ exhibition -
Tom Giesbers (Open University) gives a talk on clothes and identity -
Children build a floating city at the TU Delft Science Center -
Children build a floating city at the TU Delft Science Center -
Alessandra Luna Navarro (TU Delft) gives a workshop on heat-resilient homes -
Visitors take part in a workshop on heat-resilient homes
An open space for knowledge
Spui Campus attracted a diverse audience of The Hague residents, staff, students and more. The strong turnout demonstrated the importance of open spaces for knowledge. Spui Campus is not only a new building for research and teaching, but also a place where academia and society come together.
If you were unable to visit on Architecture Day but are curious, you are welcome to drop by. The ‘From Department Store to Knowledge Store’ exhibition is open on the ground floor.