Professional Jury: "Sustainable Noorderparkbad is exactly what Amsterdam Noord needs."

Public Jury: "The Noorderparkbad is a gem for the city."

The winners of the Amsterdam Architecture Prize 2016 are de Architekten Cie. and City of Amsterdam, the architect and the principal of the Noorderparkbad in Amsterdam.

Since last year the A.A.P. has a public jury in addition to the professional jury. This year’s result is unanimous and convincing: both juries chose the Noorderparkbad.

Last Friday 13th of May it was announced during the Architect’s ball at the W Hotel Amsterdam. The winners could come forward twice to receive gold medals from the hands of last year’s winners (VVO Klussen op de Klarenstraat for the project Klussen op de Klarenstraat as winner of the professional prize and Artis director Haig Balian for Artis Plaza as the winner of the public award).

A.A.P.

The Amsterdam Architecture Prize (A.A.P.) is an initiative of the Amsterdam Centre for Architecture (Arcam), and is explicitly a price for architect and client. The A.A.P. 2016 is awarded to the building according to a jury as considered best from all building projects completed in 2015 within the municipality of Amsterdam. The ten nominees of the A.A.P. 2016 can be found on the website of Amsterdam Centre for Architecture: http://www.arcam.nl/

Professional and public jury

This year’s professional jury members, Madeleine Maaskant (Director of Academy of Architecture Amsterdam), architect Bart Reuser (NEXT Architects) and architectural historian Marieke Berkers (guest lecturer Academy of Architecture and Gerrit Rietveld Academy), have chosen ten projects. The Amsterdam public jury consisted of physician Tom Matthews, retired university lecturer teaching of the beta sciences Rien van Krieken and web editor at the Dutch Association of Banks Olivier Bolluijt.

From the professional jury report:

The Noorderparkbad of de Architekten Cie. Is a new pool that replaces the old Floraparkbad. The pool is a meeting place for new and old 'Northerners' with indoor and outdoor pools, a water slide and a catering facility for the whole neighbourhood. The jury has a lot of respect for the most sustainable pool of Netherlands commissioned by the Municipality Amsterdam. The facades are contemporary design. Also the masonry refers to the style of the Amsterdam School in the surrounding neighbourhood. The rainwater drainage is processed in a special way in which a metal curtain is draped around the pool like a "veil". Within the transparency is, the materials and the pleasant atmosphere. Inside the transparency, the materials and the pleasant atmosphere are standing out. Daylight even falls inside the changing rooms, and connects inside and outside. Suspended ceilings and wooden construction also make the acoustics pleasant. The jury considers the pool to be exemplary of the tremendous development that North Amsterdam is going through.

From the audience jury:

A surprising building, oval wavy and totally incorporated into the parkland around it. An ingenious rain curtain of knitted steel ensures that rainwater can be recycled into the pool and the curtain breaks the facade. In case of frost it becomes a white curtain. Many solar panels make the building the most sustainable in the Netherlands and that is quite something for pool that’s always warm. Inside it is surprisingly light, even in the locker room areas. The three halls are different in height. The tile work is surprising.  Everywhere beautiful patterns in two colours. Outside the masonry is very original: the name Noorderpakbad is made in brick in the facade. It is a gem for the city that meets all the criteria of the public jury for the best building of 2015. The Noorderparkbad deserves the Public Award.

For editors, not for publication:

For more information: Amsterdam Centre for Architecture, Femke Gerritsma, Communications Department, communicatie@arcam.nl / +3120 6204878/+316 24506998

Noorderpakbad: de Architekten Cie: architect Branimir Medic. +316 21578008.

Press and Media: Ernst van Raaphorst, e.v.raaphorst@cie.nl. Tel: +3120 5309 300

City of Amsterdam: Sjaak Huijsman, s.huijsman@pmb.amsterdam.nl / Wieke van Dongen,

wvdongen@pmb.amsterdam.nl

When publishing please indicate the appropriate credits and the name of the photographer:

Noorderpakbad, de Architekten Cie., Branimir Medic and Pero Puljiz, 2015.

Photographer:.Jeroen Musch.