Hasselt Beguinage
An exterior street view of David Kohn Architects' Hasselt Beguinage project, demonstrating how a contemporary brick tower with an arched oculus integrates into a historic European urban fabric.
- What we like about this project
- The large arched opening near the top of the slender brick tower creates a distinct crown that frames the sky.
Materials
- brick
- slate
- stone
- glass
- metal
Visual identifiers
- brick-tower
- arched-oculus
- historic-streetscape
- masonry-facades
- urban-infill
Style tags
- contextual-modern
- historicist
- brick-architecture
Visual tags
- contextual
- historic-context
- brickwork
- tower
- public-realm
- urban-integration
- Geometry
- An urban street edge with low historic masonry buildings in the foreground, anchored vertically by a slender, modern brick tower rising in the background featuring a large arched oculus near the top.
- Facade system
- Load-bearing traditional brickwork for historic structures; contemporary textured masonry for the background tower.
- Structural guess
- Load-bearing masonry structures with a contemporary engineered vertical tower core.
- Spatial scale
- Pedestrian street scale contrasted by the vertical presence of the multi-story brick tower in the background.
- Lighting
- Diffused overcast daylight with soft shadows and even illumination across the street level and brick textures.
- Atmosphere
- Charming, historic town atmosphere enlivened by a bold yet sympathetic contemporary vertical landmark.
- Environmental context
- European historic urban street with traditional masonry facades, pitched slate roofs, outdoor cafe seating, and pedestrians.
- Spatial experience
- The view moves from the cobblestone pedestrian street up along the layered historic facades, drawing the eye toward the vertical landmark tower rising unexpectedly behind.
- Composition rhythm
- Horizontal progression of historic storefronts juxtaposed against the strong vertical axis of the background tower.
- Style reading
- Contextual contemporary insertion into historic urban fabric
- Program
- Cultural or civic intervention within a historic beguinage precinct
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture
- Materials
- brick, slate, stone, glass, metal
- Visual identifiers
- brick-tower, arched-oculus, historic-streetscape, masonry-facades, urban-infill
- Style tags
- contextual-modern, historicist, brick-architecture
- Visual tags
- contextual, historic-context, brickwork, tower, public-realm, urban-integration
- Geometry
- An urban street edge with low historic masonry buildings in the foreground, anchored vertically by a slender, modern brick tower rising in the background featuring a large arched oculus near the top.
- Facade system
- Load-bearing traditional brickwork for historic structures; contemporary textured masonry for the background tower.
- Structural guess
- Load-bearing masonry structures with a contemporary engineered vertical tower core.
- Spatial scale
- Pedestrian street scale contrasted by the vertical presence of the multi-story brick tower in the background.
- Lighting
- Diffused overcast daylight with soft shadows and even illumination across the street level and brick textures.
- Atmosphere
- Charming, historic town atmosphere enlivened by a bold yet sympathetic contemporary vertical landmark.
- Environmental context
- European historic urban street with traditional masonry facades, pitched slate roofs, outdoor cafe seating, and pedestrians.
- Spatial experience
- The view moves from the cobblestone pedestrian street up along the layered historic facades, drawing the eye toward the vertical landmark tower rising unexpectedly behind.
- Composition rhythm
- Horizontal progression of historic storefronts juxtaposed against the strong vertical axis of the background tower.
- Style reading
- Contextual contemporary insertion into historic urban fabric
- Program
- Cultural or civic intervention within a historic beguinage precinct
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture