Gijs Van Vaerenbergh has created a poured concrete reception pavilion for the German Military Cemetery in Hooglede featuring six vaults.
Ss the design of Six Vaults pavilion was influenced by classical architecture, the project demonstrates a new interpretation of the classic arch and vault typologies. Six diagonal vaults were cut out of a massive volume of nine by nine by five metres at different angles. This creates a covered space, defined by a complex vault and columns structure of varying shapes and dimensions. The resulting ‘viewing machine’ emphasizes a composition of voids that reveal their bucolic surroundings.
During the design process the architects started with a cube shape and cut away the voids. The resulting shape was then recreated at a large scale in poured concrete.
"This creates a pictorial play of arc in arc that brings to the fore the way the play of light affects the vaults. As such, the pavilion functions as a kind of viewing machine that brings both itself and the environment to the fore." — Gijs Van Vaerenbergh
