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Amsterdam Courthouse

KAAN Architecten

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Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Governmental Interior
7.64
8.00
7.86
6.21
7.43
Stefan Weil
Stefan Weil CCO at Atelier Markgraph
Future driven Classic. The extended...
8
8
8
6
7.5
Leni Popovici
Leni Popovici Founding Director and Partner at KAP Studios
A very formal space made accessible...
9
9
8
7
8.25
Omar Abdelghafour
Omar Abdelghafour Founder Principal at Light Space Design
the cross weave stairs, the marble...
9
9
9
7
8.5
Christiaan Fokkema
Christiaan Fokkema Partner at Hollandse Nieuwe
Great representation of high end co...
8
9
9
7
8.25
Tina Norden
Tina Norden Partner at Conran and Partners
A stunning building with beautiful...
9
9
9
7
8.5
Justine Fox
Justine Fox Cofounder | Colour Specialist at Calzada Fox
The volumes and materials are impre...
6
6
7
5
6
Veronica Givone
Veronica Givone Managing Director Hospitality at IA Interior Architects
Ultra modern and very functional....
8
8
8
5
7.25
Anne-Rachel Schiffmann
Anne-Rachel Schiffmann Director of Interior Architecture at Snøhetta
Impeccable design and detailing see...
7
8
8
6
7.25
Ruud Belmans
Ruud Belmans Creative Director at WeWantMore
The building represents a very good...
7
9
7
7
7.5
Mengjie Liu
Mengjie Liu Cofounder at Sò Studio
7
8
8
7
7.5
Yifan Wu
Yifan Wu Cofounder at Sò Studio
8
8
8
6
7.5
Gudy Herder
Gudy Herder Trend Consultant at Eclectic Trends
The simple idea of using design as...
8
8
8
5
7.25
Sonia Tomic
Sonia Tomic Senior Associate, Head of Furniture & Materials at Universal Design Studio
6
6
6
5
5.75
Liam Doyle
Liam Doyle Principal at Jump Studios
7
7
7
7
7
Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
GRAND JURY VOTES
Shortlisted - Governmental Interior of the Year
8.07
8.58
8.04
6.83
7.88
Bill Bouchey
Bill Bouchey Principal - Director of Design Interiors at HOK
7.64
8.83
8.12
8.17
8.19
Stefan Weil
Stefan Weil CCO at Atelier Markgraph
7.64
8
7.86
6.21
7.43
Anne-Rachel Schiffmann
Anne-Rachel Schiffmann Director of Interior Architecture at Snøhetta
8.1
8.6
8.31
6.74
7.94
Serhii Makhno
Serhii Makhno Founder at Sergey Makhno Architects
8.9
8.87
7.86
6.21
7.96
Client
Rijksvastgoedbedrijf
Floor area
50.000 ㎡
Completion
2020
Construction, technical installations, fire control, acoustics advisor, structural engineer
HVAC and building control
Fire safety and security

The Amsterdam Courthouse was built to replace the outdated judicial complex in the up-and-coming Zuidas district in south Amsterdam. With 50 courtrooms and a surface of almost 50.000 sqm, the building is the biggest courthouse in the Netherlands; its exemplary efficiency materializes in a stately yet open functional structure. In its design, the Courthouse adheres to the principle that the judicial process is a public matter. Exuding approachable authority, the 50-meter-high building is a stately yet inviting institution for public discourse. A vast square in front of the building offers an unobstructed view to the lower floor dedicated to the public area through large windows. Passing an elegant canopy on the main square, visitors are welcomed into the ground floor central foyer, equipped with reception desks and a cafeteria. Rising upward, the courtrooms unfold surrounded by spacious foyers where visitors come and go; lawyers consult with clients and reporters. The highest floors are connected through a grand circular staircase, giving way to offices and judges' chambers set around green indoor and outdoor courtyards. Meanwhile, the defendants' detention cell area is located under the building with separate pick-up and drop-off ramps. The Courthouse is horizontally divided into three greater sections to facilitate the separation of its functions and efficient circulation of employees, judges and visitors within its structure. The courthouse's most open and public areas feature large openings on the lower floors, directly connected to the public square, and get progressively smaller and tailored from collective to individual scale as the nature of work becomes more confidential and private. As the public makes its way up from the entrance square, the lawyers and judges trickle down from their chambers at the building's crown. The relationship with the city is constant, large windows offer multiple views towards the surroundings, and the patios are flooding with greenery and light the courthouse's inner structure. Built through a collaborative process between designers, engineers, contractor and suppliers, the Amsterdam Courthouse is an intrinsically sustainable building. Energy efficiency is paired with embedded robustness, and future-proof solutions meet the requests for visitor and employee well-being. Future transformations are anticipated by achieving flexibility in the structure, technical installations, building physics and spatial organization. All the public areas such as the square, parts of the façade and the entrance hall are clad in natural stone. This choice comes not only for the material's aesthetic qualities but also for the durability and resiliency of the surfaces for easy long-term maintenance. The dark linear façade further emphasizes the dignified look of the building. High steel columns constitute the main loadbearing structure, while progressively smaller openings with fine profiles and hidden window frames create the three-part horizontal division. The Courthouse also features specifically commissioned original artwork - most noticeably the entrance square sculpture by Nicole Eisenman, Jesse Wine's series of sculptures in the back garden and Femmy Otten's courtroom artworks.