Museum for City History

The new museum for city history is situated in the heart of the old docklands of Antwerp where a major urban renewal project is being carried out to develop the area into a vibrant new district.

The MAS has been designed as a 60-metre-high tower composed of ten giant red sandstone boxes that are piled up as a physical representation of the gravity of history. Each floor of the tower is twisted a quarter turn, creating a huge spiral staircase. This spiral space, which is bordered by a wall of corrugated glass, is a public gallery, a continuation of the urban domain. The square, which is surrounded by pavilions and terraces, is an integral part of the design, an urban space for events and outdoor exhibitions. A strong sustainable design approach has been followed, which is reflected in state-of-the-art technology, flexible climate zones and a climate system that uses free water from the dock for cooling.

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