OurDomain Amsterdam South East

Amsterdam-based architecture firm OZ has used patchworked colour blocking in its transformation of an under-occupied business park into a stylish, mixed-use destination. The architects designed OurDomain Amsterdam South East, an apartment complex for students and young people.

Aesthetically, the existing individual office blocks and adjacent teaching hospital at Business Park Amstel III are diverse. OZ complemented them by creating three distinct residential buildings.

Colourful identity

East House is the building with the wow-factor; it comprises an L-shaped block that hugs one corner of the site. At the 45-degree angle, the design has been cut away in steps. This gives human scale, improves orientation and creates roof terraces. The vertical walls of these terraces have been imaginatively colour coordinated to give the building an identity.

Collaborating with Eurolacke, Axalta‘s distributor in the The Netherlands, the architects chose bright and joyful powder coatings reminiscent of the Vivid Vibe theme: all custom matches shades from the Alesta® AP Architectural Polyester range. The effect is one of colourful steps in pinks, oranges and purples that lead to the sky.

Along with its neighbours North House and West House, East House sits by a new park by landscape architects Karres en Brands, adding to the residential feel of the predominantly office location.

The Dutch capital has an acute shortage of student accommodation, and the 90,000-sq-m OurDomain Amsterdam South East adds around 1,600 apartments. OZ’s design also adds to the transformation of the area into a buzzy neighbourhood for more people to enjoy.