IABR OPEN CITY

ROTTERDAM, 2009

In response to the theme of “Open City,” we “opened up” the Netherlands Architecture Insitute (NAI) to the city of Rotterdam, and created an urban forum inside. When invited to present a concept, along with several other local offices, Maxwan took the design pitch a step further by presenting not only an exhibition concept, but a proposal to turn the NAI building inside-out - and to rethink the way it engages with the city. The IABR and the curators enthusiastically chose this plan, and the NAI embraced it as a challenging strategy to make the building more accessible.
Almost all of the NAI infrastructure will be reconceived. A new bridge will bring visitors directly into the main exhibition hall—the Forum, which will house a large-scale introductory exhibition; The Hood—an auditorium and workshop space; a café; a bookshop; and an open-source multi-media archive. The forum will be continuously animated by a 12-week event program. The Open City exhibition will infiltrate the entire NAI, filling its galleries and redefining its public spaces.