Crystal Houses reopens in Amsterdam

Dutch design practice, MVRDV has reopened their project, Crystal Houses, this time with a new tenant and façade. Originally constructed in 2016 for luxury fashion label Chanel, now it adds another luxury label, Hermès as tenant of the iconic shop front.

The usual brick finish was replaced by a glass replica of the building material, which dissolves into the traditional terracotta bricks on the upper levels. It is located in Amsterdam on the high-end shopping street, PC Hooftstraat.

GALLERY  

The project’s jewel-like front was originally proposed as a way for Amsterdam to be home to distinctive, upmarket flagships without compromising the city’s historical character.

The project was created for Amsterdam-based retail and real-estate company, Warenar, envisioned originally as a re-creation of the traditional buildings that make up the existing urban fabric of the area.

To replace the traditional bricks, MVRDV worked with TU Delft, engineering firm ABT and contractor, Wessels Zeist. The materials were provided by glass manufacturer Poesia and Delo Industrial Adhesives. The enormous and intense research behind the project culminated in a shopfront that combines the transparency and delicacy of a glass retail frontage with the intricate complexity of traditional brick constructions.

For more information please visit MVRDV

Images by Daria Scagliola and Stijn Brakkee via of ArchDaily






Get our enews

Design and development news that comes to you

Subscribe
                 


Historic Canadian Hotel Reimagined as a Rural Cultural Anchor

In the heart of Prince Edward County’s main street in Picton, Ontario, a once-crumbling Victorian-era hotel has been ...

Conquest Unveils $1B Eastlakes Precinct Plan

Private equity real estate firm Conquest has revealed plans for a $1-billion transformation of the Eastlakes Shopping Centre ...

Timber-Led Design for Cleveland Foundation HQ

S9 Architecture has completed a striking new headquarters for The Cleveland Foundation in Cleveland, Ohio — a timber-framed ...

Housing Boost Hinges on Innovation as States Roll Out 2025–26 Budgets

A suite of housing-focused measures announced in the 2025–26 State Budgets across the ACT, New South Wales, Queensland ...

Where to Find Tailored Tax Tips for Tradies

The Financial Year is just about to end, and for tradies, it’s important to know exactly what you ...

  MORE  

Stay connected to the SPEC

Join our reader network by signing up to our weekly newsletter and receive design and development news straight to your inbox





Specifier Source is brought to you by the same company that publishes Home Design, Grand Designs Australia Magazine, Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly Magazine, Outdoor Design Source, Build Home, CompleteHome and many more.

© 2022 Universal Media Co. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy. Terms of Service. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Universal Media Co.