Page 123 - AIT1025_E-Paper

Entwurf • Design IA: Universal Design Studio, GB-London
O n Mechelsesteenweg in Antwerp, one of the main roads that are
Grundriss Erdgeschoss • Groundfloor plan
Grundriss 1. Obergeschoss • Floor plan level +1
A: Ono Architectuur, BE-Antwerpen
Bauherr • Client Chris Poulissen, Schoups, BE-Antwerpen
Standort • Location Mechelsesteenweg 127, BE-Antwerpen
Nutzfläche • Floor space 6350 m 2
Fotos • Photos Filip Dujardin, Belgien
Mehr Infos auf Seite • More info on page 150
COWORKING SPACE M127
IN ANTWERP
Let’s work together: In Antwerp, this motto is reflected
not only in the exceptionally exciting, shared spaces of
the Schoups law firm and the M127 co-working space. The
former police station, which dates back to the 1960s, is
also an example of the successful transformation of a con-
crete relic and of an attractive urban shoulder-to-shoulder
stance with neighbouring buildings.
leading right into the city centre, townhouses are lined up in a
heterogeneous manner – a wild mix of historic houses and houses built
during the interwar and post-war periods. The eight-storey building
at number 127 – hence the name M127 – was built in the 1960s as a
police station. It looked downright forbidding between the beautiful
Wilhelminian-style Mago Music Academy and the neo-Romanesque
Heilige Geest Kerk (Holy Spirit Church). By mid-2024, a completely
new cityscape was be visible at this location: Universal Design Studio,
Ono Architectuur, Belgian artist Philip Aguirre y Otegui and landscape
designer Ludovic Devriendt transformed the “ugly duckling” into the
headquarters of the lawyers and coworking spaces on behalf of entre-
preneur Chris Poulissen and the law firm Schoups. A unique combina-
tion of uses and a gain for the public space! The building’s new loggia,
with its sculptural concrete columns, creates a covered outdoor seating
area for a café and thus an attractive outdoor zone. The colonnade also
forms the entrance to the building and the newly created neighbour-
hood garden, discreetly integrating the entrance to the underground car
park and connecting to the church. In addition to the café, the open
ground floor offers a reception area for all users as well as meeting
rooms. The heart of the office building is the two-storey event space,
which is enclosed by vibrant curtains. Two spacious void areas now
connect the lunch area and the library on the first floor with the ground
floor. The break-off edges of the removed concrete ceilings have been
left explicitly visible. This working cosmos is open to all those who
rent space in the M127 Coworking Space. There is a choice of (half-)day
slots, flexibly usable and permanently bookable tables, and private
offices. Law students can use the library with a day pass and thus have
access to professional-grade study facilities. And then there are the
law firm’s offices with tiles and carpets in earthy red tones, as well as
partition walls and furniture made of natural wood. The façade is clad
in brick, similar to the church. The ensemble is impressive!
AIT 10.2025 • 123