CasaNova Rotterdam tower building, The Muse Apartments photos, Dutch residential architecture, Wijnhaven 65 Netherlands high rise

CasaNova Rotterdam Tower Building

16 Sep 2023

Architecture: Barcode Architects – Bureau for Architecture and Contemporary Design

Location: Wijnhaven 65, Maritime District, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Barcode Architects’ CasaNova, the new generation of high-rise buildings that focuses on the encounter between residents.

Photos © studiohanswilschut

CasaNova Rotterdam Tower Building News

The Muse and CasaNova

In the wake of the economic crisis, Barcode Architects took the initiative in 2013 to develop a tower on the Wijnhaven 69 plot, where The Muse now stands. With an initial plan for the plot at Wijnhaven 69, we also managed to convince the developing party to buy Wijnhaven 65. And so this led to two residential towers designed in synergy with each other.

As a result, CasaNova and the Muse share many common spaces, such as a collective rooftop garden and a kitchen, hotel rooms for guests, co-working spaces, meeting rooms, fitness area, and parcel service room.

Connection with the city centre

CasaNova, part of the high-rise cluster in Wijnhaven, is a striking example of Rotterdam’s new generation of towers. Its all-sided and recognisable triangular volume gives a new impetus to the Wijnhaven area, which is transforming from an anonymous office district into a lively part of the city centre. By activating the corner of Wijnhaven, a new enhanced connection is made between the Oude Haven and the Markthal, via the Leuvehaven and the Witte de Withstraat to Museumpark. CasaNova’s entrance lobby is extended across the entire depth of the block, from Wijnhaven to Wijnstraat. This new crossing creates movement and activity in both streets and provides residents with a full-fledged entrance from both city sides through a unique ‘doorway lobby’.

Sculpture on a plinth

The characteristic shape of CasaNova is a creative response to KCAP’s urban plan, which stipulates that for every square metre of ground, 22m³ of building may be returned. The choice was made to cut away volume at the bottom and add volume at the top, so that it appears to balance on a pedestal, like a sculpture. The slender volume creates optimal sightlines and daylight in the surrounding buildings, and space for a 1,600m² roof garden where residents of CasaNova and The Muse can meet each other. By placing the roof garden on level five rather than on the roof the tower, the garden is also connected to the ground level.

The unusual shape gives the apartments spectacular 300-degree views over the city, offering a very special living experience. At the corners of the triangle there are generous balconies of 15m2, designed as an outdoor room of the living space, all exposed to the morning and evening sun. The triangular shape with its tip facing south, allows optimal exposure to sunlight.

Sculpting a facade

The idea of sculpting a tower is also reflected in the facade design. Hand-cut panels of reddish-brown natural stone give the tower an artisanal and warm character. As light changes, the strong relief in the stone constantly gives the building a new look. Towards the top of the tower, the panels get wider and wider, with smoothly polished flattening. The façade design slightly transforms up to the top of the building.

Sharing together

There has been great discussion about subversive behaviour and loneliness in skyscrapers, as well as the question of who are and might be the users of skyscrapers. In response, we have placed a strong focus on common areas and meeting spaces other than the atrium or the elevator.

Programmatically, the two towers share the same plinth and provide the comfort of living in the city. The two-hundred residents of the two towers share a 1600m2 roof terrace with collective garden, kitchen, hotel rooms for guests, co-working spaces, meeting rooms, fitness area, and parcel service room.

Casual encounters

Casual encounters and informal conversation that come with them are essential to the sense of community, safety and social cohesion in the tower. An important design intervention was to make a cut between the car park and the residences. For many residents, the car park forms the daily entrance; from the car park you walk into CasaNova through an inviting atrium with a view to the roof terrace, and meet your neighbours before stepping into the lift.

CasaNova, together with The Muse, is an example of the network city, the city where buildings and communities are cleverly connected. No longer two-dimensional, but three-dimensional.

CasaNova Rotterdam Barcode – Building Information

Project details
Client: VOF Wijnhaven 65 & Wilma Wonen
Contractor: SBB Ontwikkelen en Bouwen
Design: Barcode Architects (Dirk Peters and Caro van de Venne)

Location: Wijnhaven 65, Rotterdam
Year: 2017-2023
Status: Realised
Category: Residential
Size: 22.000m²
Programme: 116 apartments, commercial space, collective roof garden, shared parking facilities, co-working spaces, hotel rooms for residents’ guests, fitness room
Advisors: Pieters Bouwtechniek (structural engineer), ABT (building physics, acoustics, fire safety installations), VGG (cost management), Hans Wilschut (photography)

13 December 2021

Architecture: Barcode Architects – Bureau for Architecture and Contemporary Design

Location: Maritime District, Rotterdam, NL

Barcode Architects’ CasaNova, Rotterdam’s first triangular tower, tops out.

Photos © Frank Hanswijk unless stated otherwise

CasaNova Rotterdam Tower Building Design News

In the Maritime District in Rotterdam, the construction of the first triangular tower in the skyline has reached a new milestone. With the completion of floor 35, Barcode Architects’ CasaNova is at its highest point.

CasaNova is a 110-metre tower with an iconic silhouette. The building forms an ensemble with The Muse, the sculptural residential tower by Barcode Architects on the adjacent plot, which was completed last year. Both towers are designed in synergy, both architecturally and in terms of the collective program.

Barcode Architects’ partner Caro van de Venne:

“Within the city boundaries, densification through high-rise is a favorable option, but anonymous volumes where residents don’t know each other should be avoided. With CasaNova, we want to create a three-dimensional part of the city, where people live healthily, neighbours know each other and there is a pleasant atmosphere at ground level. The design principles used in these projects, set an example for the new Rotterdam High Rise vision.”

The all-sided building brings new energy to the Maritime District of Rotterdam, which is rapidly transforming from an anonymous office district to a vibrant urban area. CasaNova activates the corner on the Wijnhaven and forms an important link on the new walking route between the Oude Haven and the Museumpark, via the Markthal, Leuvehaven and the Witte de Withstraat.

The slender building shape ensures optimal sightlines and daylight for the surrounding buildings and gives the dwellings in the tower a 300-degree view of the city. Between the fifth and eighth floors, the volume points downwards, balancing the tower elegantly on the base. On the fifth floor, on top of the lowrise, a 1.600m2 roof garden will be realised.

The residents of CasaNova and The Muse can meet each other here informally, and the roof garden is directly connected with the liveliness on the quay. Besides the collective roof garden, various shared functions are included in the program, such as a gym, a communal kitchen, co-working spaces, meeting rooms and hotel rooms that residents can reserve for their guests. In the plinth, hospitality functions and the central entrance add liveliness to the public space on ground level.

The tower contains a rich residential program with 116 dwellings, from more compact apartments in the low-rise block to spacious tower apartments and exclusive penthouses with large outdoor spaces. Floorto-ceiling windows ensure optimal daylight entry and spectacular views in all the tower apartments.

The vertical orientation in the façade accentuates the slender design. Red-brown travertine panels give the tower a warm and powerful appearance all around. Towards the top of the tower, the panels have gradually broader smooth-edged surfaces. These elements reflect the sunlight, creating a shifting appearance throughout the day and making the top of the tower seem to disappear into the sky. CasaNova is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.

The Muse in Rotterdam – Building Information

Bureau for Architecture and Contemporary Design
Location: Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Program: 116 apartments, commercial space, collective roof garden, shared parking facility, co-working spaces, hotel rooms for guests residents, gym
Client: VOF Wijnhaven 65 & Wilma Wonen
Year: 2017-ongoing

Status: Under construction
Size: 22.000m2
Collaborators: Pieters Bouwtechniek (structure), ABT (installations, building physics, fire safety, acoustics), SBB Ontwikkelen en Bouwen (construction), VVG (cost management), Frank Hanswijk (photography)

CasaNova Rotterdam Tower Building images / information 131221 from Bureau for Architecture and Contemporary Design

The Muse Rotterdam Building by Barcode Architects

Location: Rotterdam, The Netherlands, western Europe