How did we design the Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen with sustainability and inclusivity in mind?

On 29 March, founding partner and principal architect Winy Maas will discuss the processes and principles behind the world's first fully accessible art depot. With many museums around the world exhibiting only a small percentage of their overall collections at any time, the depot broke with this tradition of having to conceal previously invisible works, making the Boijmans' entire catalogue available. Winy will explain how the depot's design is completely democratic, with any visitor being able to explore 99% of the building, and with a rooftop that is freely available not only to museum guests but the community at large, it delivered a new and inclusive space larger than the occupied footprint it inhabits. Despite the specific climate conditions and climate zones required to preserve the art works, Winy will also demonstrate how it was possible to make the depot energy-neutral with regard to building-related energy consumption. 

The ‘M’ of MVRDV, Founding Partner and Principal Architect Winy Maas has received international acclaim for his broad range of urban planning and building projects, across all typologies and scales. These are often self-generated, innovative, experimental, and theoretical. Driven by this dedication to green, user-defined, sustainable cities and spaces, Maas’ leadership drives many of the office’s award-winning projects, amongst them Rotterdam’s Markthal, Crystal Houses, the Tianjin Binhai Library, Valley and the first publicly accessible art depot in the world, Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen. 

• Date & Time: 29 March, from 11:10 (HKT)
• Location: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC), 1 Expo Drive, Wanchai, Hong Kong
• More information on the event can be found here