Project carried out by Maxime GREGOIRE, Laura CAMPELLI and Houmam MELIANI
This August 2021, during the Summer School of Traditional Architecture in Belgium, we
were introduced to the creation of counter-projects; a tool to show the public that an alternative is possible to modernist, radical and systematic architecture, which continues to prevail in cities today. The idea is to reveal to the public the existing architectural qualities through a proposal aimed at defending a built heritage, but also, to seek solutions to revitalize a space and beautify it. The counter-project also aims to reestablish a notion of beauty hidden by modernism in order to seek to recreate an architecture that pleases its users.
We looked at the case of Place de Brouckère, in the very center of Brussels. In its current state, it is a place in name only because it is used as a place of passage. Located on the axis linking the Gare du Midi to the Gare Bruxelles Nord, it is seen as an extension of the boulevard. The square is empty, all the metro exits are oriented towards the outside of the square and two oversized towers crush the whole.
The counter-project aimed to address the problem of this square to give it back its primary function: a public square. The constraint? To preserve as much as possible of the existing, including the trees and the locations of the metro exits. For us, the goal was therefore to redevelop this square so that it becomes popular, busy, pleasant and can accommodate various activities for the people of Brussels (shops, crafts, markets, events, etc.).
Our first intention was therefore to recreate a typology of square by adding a
"fourth facade" to close the space by creating a new building. This
building also has the role of giving the Place de Brouckère a more human scale and of staging it to reveal the 19th century buildings that compose it, in particular the monumental façade of the Hôtel Continental.
Our proposal is also based on our experience of the city of Brussels and its
uses: we wanted to create areas where people could take shelter in case of rain so that the square could
continue to live whatever the weather, using the example of the covered galleries and the Vaux-hall. The project can therefore be broken down into two parts. First, an outdoor public square framed by two covered halls. Then, in the new building, a rotunda topped with a dome that can serve as an indoor public square.
The main building, marked by its central rotunda, is a mixed-use building: the lower levels are allocated for shops while the upper levels are for residential use. The entrance to the main façade is via the corners, in the manner of the Saint Géry market halls, which allowed us to create a monumental façade accompanied by a forecourt. The height of the building takes into account the nearby context, to remain equivalent to the heights of the surrounding buildings, in order to maintain a certain harmony and give it a human scale.
The entire system serves as a staging for the discovery of the Place de Brouckère: we are first greeted by an obelisk, then there is the forecourt around the main façade, and its fountain, the entrance, which is via the corners, is accompanied by a few symbolic steps which will then descend towards the rotunda, on four levels, and its glass dome. The route continues through a covered gallery on two levels, before coming out on the other side, and discovering the Hôtel Continental, which overlooks the square framed by the covered market halls.
We have favoured local and sustainable materials: Belgian blue stone for the
bases, bricks, slates; accompanied by French stone and wooden frames.
To conclude, we observed the old town and its characteristics, to make a
proposal for the rehabilitation of Place de Brouckère, which takes into account the identity of the city and the square, in order to make it a real public square, invested by the inhabitants of Brussels.
