Kunstlinie Almere

"De Kunstlinie" is the name of a theater and arts center in Almere, Netherlands, designed by Japanese architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa (Sanaa, Tokyo) in collaboration with Goor Architecten. In 1999 they had won the corresponding competition for it. The new cultural center is located directly on the shore and partly even on the Weerwater lake right in the cultural center of Almere. Most of the building is supported by more than a hundred underwater concrete supports, and a watertight tub accommodates the basement and changing rooms.

The main building is a simple orthogonal low-rise building from which three higher blocks “grow”: the tower of the large performance hall with 1,050 seats, that of the smaller hall with 350 seats and the “performance room” with 150 seats. The offices of the Kunstlinie art center are above the small auditorium. The outer facades of the building are completely glazed, even where closed walls were necessary (these are additionally provided with glass). A lighting mood shaped by the water runs through the entire building, and for the most part you can also see the water.