De Silo - Detail

De Silo turns twelve grain silos along the Albert Canal into a sustainable experiment in recuperation architecture. Openings cut into the concrete and new floors inserted inside now house a2o's offices, while the scars of the intervention are left untouched.

The interior of the Silo, a former grain silo now used as an office, shows how much can be done with little. The saw cuts and demolition work needed to make the transformation possible were not hidden but embraced as decorative elements. The raw concrete, with its drip marks and small imperfections, was sprayed over in a warm white, and together these traces form a playful pattern running through the office, almost like an abstract, three-dimensional wallpaper.

The building now houses a creative design studio, and every corner is filled with colourful models, material studies, mock-ups and colour samples. The decision to keep the interior white and neutral gives these experiments a calm backdrop in which to stand out. Against it, the black and red staircases that wind through the building make a strong contrast and accentuate the circulation, turning the route through the building into part of the composition.

Flexibility and the ability to grow were the starting point from the beginning. Double-height spaces were deliberately left open, and openings were proactively cut into the existing concrete structure and closed up again afterwards, ready to be reopened when needed. In the voids, timber floors can be added, and openings can be made to combine spaces. In this way, the interior can grow along with the company that occupies it.