Building Company van Schaik

This company building on the outskirts of Breukelen, near Utrecht consists of two orthogonal volumes which form, being square to each, the corner of the yard. The angular plot has been put to a clear arrangement by this positioning. The two buildings bordering this plaza are a linguistic as well as a compositional ensemble. The glazed façade of the office is imprinted with the company’s name, while its field of operation – bouwbedrijf (construction firm) – is picked out in relief on the concrete wall of the warehouse. By integrating the company name into the façades, this architecture operates in two contrary directions. While the similarity to a billboard evokes an association with impermanence, the architectural ‘walling-in’ of the name lends this company building a permanence that is quite unusual for such an volatile and often makeshift genre. (text from website Claus en Kaan architects).