Modest model worker

Architectural Review, The, Dec, 1994 by Connie Van Cleef

Although Herman Hertzberger's humane, egalitarian approach to workplace design seems increasingly remote in the current climate, his latest office building is an inspiring model for similar developments.

Since the Centraal Beheer was completed in 1972, Herman Hertzberger's notion of

a spatial framework capable of nurturing both individual expression and group interaction remains an instructive, if elusive, paradigm -- particularly when set against current corporate preoccupations with formless tracts of shell and core. His latest building, for the Benelux Merkenburo (trademark office) in the Hague, further explores the notion that workplaces are complex communities, yet it also embodies the post-centraal Beheer recognition that exterior form cannot be generated by internal forces alone. Although an essentially modest building, the Merkenburo could well provide a new model for similar kinds of workplaces, in its enlightened approach to space, hierarchy and enclosure.

The Merkenburo occupies an indeterminate greenfield site on the edge of a residential area, just two kilometres away from the Ministry of Social Welfare, (AR March 1991) another exemplary Hertzberger workplace. The building responds to its pastoral location by literally reaching out and embracing its surroundings. Parallel strips of office space are splayed out horizontally in an X-shaped plan, forming a series of wings radiating centrifugally from a nodal entrance hall. The connection with nature is further restated by the creation of a new pond, filled with water drawn from the adjoining River Schenk, that snakes up the edge of the building. The water penetrates through one of the wings, in a calm, Zen-like way, both merging with and reflecting the solid volumes. The building is entered at a single point, on a wedge-shaped intersection between the east wing and the central block. The nodal hall is the heart of the structure, extending over three storeys and partly glazed to admit abundant daylight. At each end the hall extends onto terraces which adjoin the sunken levels of the restaurant and lobby spaces, so that in summer workers can eat or simply lounge en plein air. The central hall is also conceived as a forum for meetings, whether by chance or accident, encouraging both formal and iNformal modes of communication. This space defines the character of the building, breaking down traditional divisions between successive floors and stimulating contact between occupants. The idea that spatial organization can offer positive opportunities for communication is fundamental to the design process. As Hertzberger notes, `Social interaction is not only important in relation to work breaks and relaxation, it also serves an intellectual purpose, as everyone knows who has spent far too long trying to solve a particular problem on his own, only to discover, after running into a colleague by pure chance, that his colleague already had all the answers.' All the office spaces open directly onto the central hall; there are no corridors. In effect Hertzberger has deconstructed the conventional floorplate and widened the corridors to create a pivotal central space. An eye-catching elliptical stair, a device also used at the Ministry of Social Welfare, winds vertiginously to the floors above. The two office wings -- each split into two sections -- are extended on both sides by a continuous bay window. On one side the bays enlarge the off ice spaces, while on the other they contain galleries that terminate in the staircase. Although the X-shaped plan means that occupants are obliged to walk greater distances than in a conventional office, all the inside spaces are bathed in light and all have views out to the green sward beyond. Circulation routes are defined by austerely detailed balcony rails. Meeting rooms are located in a penthouse on the top floor, which is also equipped with a kitchen and bar, for private gatherings and receptions. In keeping with its role as the headquarters of a conservative bureaucracy, the Merkenburo is a necessarily modest building, yet it has a dignity and humanity that so many modern offices shamefully lack.