PAINTING FRAME

The Leuvekolk has a centuries-long history, in which it connected the inner-city canals with the Leuvehaven for periods, but it was also filled in to improve traffic safety around the Zeevischmarkt: the market hall of the pre-war water city that was partly in the plan area. The last time that the water connection was discontinued was because of the metro construction under the Blaak in 1967. This marked the definitive end of Rotterdam as a traditional water city, because it was the last waterway connection between Rotte- and Maaswater within the city triangle. From the war until then, the Leuvekolk had served as a waiting area for the tunnel under Blaak towards the Leuvesluis. With the construction of the metro, the boat as a means of transport between Rotterdam and the surrounding area was history and made way for motorized transport over land.
 

In 2020, the water connection between Rotte- and Maaswater was restored. Admittedly not for people, but by means of a passage for fish that can migrate between the rivers. This ecological intervention is accompanied by the transformation of the neglected shady outdoor space of the Leuvekolk into a residential location along the Rottetracé. The outdoor space is related to the fish passage, like the frame is to a painting. It is unmistakably about the painting, in which the frame is sunservient to its attention. Functional by making the chamber accessible and friendly to stay from the upper quay to the water by means of a laying-slope and comfortable seating elements. Aesthetic in its introverted design.