Extrapool Gevel Grand Prix

28/08/2006    Architecture, Art, Design 3D, Publications

Extrapool introduced an open invitation to artists of all disciplines to create a proposal for the redesigning of their building’s facade, one reflecting their mentality and activities. First prize is the realization of the plan.

Extrapool is an art space in Nijmegen where character, experiment and conceptual base are of importance. As ‘Knust’, Extrapool is a (stencil) print workshop and publisher. As performance and exhibition space, Extrapool explores and crosses the frontiers between music, visual art, performance and film/video. The Extrapool staff is comprised of artists, and this implies that artists’ projects are realized when we find a clear connection in vision and mentality with Extrapool. Unlike most other cultural organizations, they are a generator rather than simply a purveyor of art.

I entered the following proposal for this competition:

“Although a lot has to happen to the facade of Extrapool to communicate the character of the activities inside to the outside world, I’m still very positive about the typography above the entrance, even after all these years. I especially like the way the upside down A points out the entrance. This is why I chose to use this typography as a starting point for my proposal.

The design consists of a striped plating that is fixated 10 cm outside the present facade of the building, so drainpipes and other projections can be placed behind the plating where possible. At the same time this distance makes the plating break away visually from the facade. The plating sort of hovers in front of the facade like a shell.

The plating consists of a large number of long pieces of material, that emphasize the lines of the reversed A in the original typography. This way the whole facade points to the entrance. The attention is optically drawn to the entrance which can make it easier to venture inside. If the entrance itself can also get a somewhat more open character in the future reconstruction of the building, potential visitors will find their way in so much easier.

The design of the facade can be perpetuated in the side facade as well. This way the whole building is focused towards the entrance, instead of ‘just’ the front.

The plating can be an ideal framework for all sorts of publicity materials and attention grabbers. Besides the nessecary space next to the entrance with the programme, one could think of billboards, flags, lighting (in front and behind the plating), color, and so on. A world of possibilities.”

All participants take part in the contest exhibition during a ‘Anderhalf Wit Avond’ in Extrapool and are published in a contest release.