Villa VPRO

In 1997 the VPRO moved from its old premises, a group of 13 villas, to the new ‘Villa VPRO. Over the years the old villas had played a vital role in establishing the VPRO’'s identity. The staff, who previously worked in rooms en-suite, attics, sun lounges and on first floors now had to find a spot for themselves in a ‘real’ office environment. The question that became central to the design of a new head office was whether the informal way the old villas were used, which regularly influenced the programmes that were made in them, would still be able to find a place in a modern office designed for maximum efficiency. In other words, would ‘informality’ be able to survive the increase in scale? Would there be any point in retaining the villa as a metaphor?

The greenery that stood where the building now stands is replaced by a raised grass covered roof under which lies a ‘geological formation’ made up of the different floors. These floors are connected to one another by a variety of spatial devices such as ramps, stepped floors, monumental steps and small rises, so providing a route to the roof. The differences in height in the resulting continuous interior, combined with the wings created by the gaps, make possible a wide range of work contexts in different office typologies to meet the ever-changing demands imposed by VPRO'’s activities. Lounge, attic, hall, patio and terrace types all serve to echo the old premises.