Margraten, Netherlands

Netherlands American Cemetery Visitor Center by KAAN Architecten together with Karres en Brands for the American Battle Monuments Commission is a product of an integrated design process dedicated to creating an effective and efficient facility with attention to the landscape.

Located southwest of the entrance of the Court of Honor, on an opening amid a ring of scattered trees, the building blends with the sloping topography, its presence delicate in relation to the monumental features of the Cemetery.

The architects have created pathways that naturally lead toward the entry plaza which is surrounded by deep seating edges that form the soft border between an existing serene landscape and a gently inserted new building.

Both the plaza and the Visitor Center are sunken into the ground, revealing an excavated surface on which furniture and pedestals appear as archaeological artifacts.

The abstract cubic volume of the building is suspended above the landscape, its sculptural shape creating a subtle tension with the natural environment.

The panoramic curtain (glazing façade) wraps around the building eventually revealing the interior of the building at its full height and becoming an essential aspect of the exhibition experience.

Project: Netherlands American Cemetery Visitor Center
Architects: KAAN Architecten
Design Team: Rita Alessio, Alessandro Arcangeli, Bas Barendse, Alice Colombo, Adam Kelly, Nicki van Loon, Edoardo Mancini, Alexis Oh, Vincent Panhuysen, Dikkie Scipio,and Frane Stancic
Landscape Architects: Karres en Brands
Structural Design: Pieters Bouwtechniek
General Contractor: Groep van Roey
Client: American Battle Monuments Commission
Photographs: Courtesy of KAAN Architecten