In the historic port of Ostend, One Baelskaai is the figurehead of Oosteroever. The iconic corner building of the Versluys Group received undulating terraces and expressive terrace edges designed by Binst Architects. To evoke the dune grass and dune fencing, the architects chose Linarte, brown-black/bronze profiled cladding from Renson.
That a residential, high-end finished, iconic corner building pushes architectural boundaries should not in itself be surprising. But in the case of One Baelskaai, the result can truly be called unique and outstanding. "We were able to very experimentally explore the facade and terraces in terms of form, appearance and materialization," says Ward Lagrain, project manager at Binst Architects.
"The facade reflects the character of the site, the port area and the coast. With their expressive edges, the terraces give the complex a unique look and maritime character. The undulations of the building go along with the undulating character of the nearby dune landscape and the sea. Undulating continuous glass balustrades reflect light, air and water."
The materialization of One Baelskaai also refers to the surrounding dune landscape. Renson's profiled, vertical Linarte cladding evokes the image of the dunes. Although Linarte offers endless personalization possibilities with the addition of wood or leather inserts, the architect opted for the pure and clean look.
"However, this was not decided overnight. The structural work was already at level +3 when the Renson product came 'into the picture'. We did specify that we wanted a vertically profiled facade that winked at the dune grass and the wooden posts with iron wire that demarcate the dunes. That subtle vertical reference in our facade contrasts nicely with the horizontally sloping terrace borders," says Ward Lagrain.
After a long search, Binst Architects ended up with Linarte. "At that time, there was already a lot of activity on the site. Windows had already been installed that were not sized for a particular cladding. This of course played into Renson's hands, because Linarte is - to our knowledge - the only system on the market that allows slack per profile bar. The aluminum cladding is perfectly adaptable to the different sizes between the windows, so we were able to end up with a full size. This way we obtained a logical facade, without having to cut profiles here and there. We also believe that this system is a good way to attach aluminum to the facade. In doing so, we did opt for a custom-made Linarte solution. The profiles at One Baelskaai have the depth of the Block 30, but the width was scaled to a nominal step of 120 mm. A total of over 2,500 m² of Linarte cladding was installed. The fact that we already knew the Renson products very well, including designing the Renson headquarters in Waregem and Renson Outdoor/NOA in Kruisem, obviously helped. We have had a good relationship with the company for years."
"The bronze/brownish-black color of the Linarte profiles exudes a kind of homeliness. It is less harsh than standard black or gray anyway and has more of a 'resort' vibe. This allowed us to give the cold aluminum a warm hue that blends nicely with the natural sand tones," Ward Lagrain explains.
CEO Luc Binst also looks back with satisfaction on this prestige project. "We are very happy to have been given the opportunity to push an architectural boundary. One Baelskaai is a building that is rare in Flanders. The project took some doing, but when you see the result afterwards, it is of course very satisfying. We have received nothing but compliments on the beauty of the building."
More information can be found at: www.renson.net.