Brabo 2 project Noorderlijn
Architects Van Belle & Medina
Antwerp, opposite the Zaha Hadidplein
2019
Brabo 2
The Brabo 2 project includes the new tram connections across the Noorderleien and Noorderlaan. For the design of the traction stations two architectural firms were approached, the building we are viewing today is by architects Van Belle & Medina.
Traction station
The architects were allowed to construct a total of three electricity cabins for the new tram lines in the north of Antwerp. There is one opposite the Havenhuis, another under a bridge next to a bus parking in the Tjalkstraat and the third along the Noorderlaan in the Luchtbal residential area. All three are constructed from a light-colored brick, each with its own shape of recesses.
Van Belle & Medina
The architectural office was founded by Kurt Van Belle and Patricia Medina. The nearby Dry Dock Park is also by them. The Flanders Architecture Book states the following about this project:
The traction substation on the busy crossroads at the foot of the Port House was conceived as a place to take a brief rest and as a lookout post. Staircases have been incorporated into both flanks of the circular building. As a result, this particular architecture does more than just house the technical equipment for the tram line. Like a small mooring post, it offers a subtle and not unironic riposte to the dominant architecture of the Port House.
Brabo 2 Noorderlijn
This article first appeared on my other site about architecture in and around Antwerp: archiplore.
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