SVZ Officer’s Bar, 2024
Stand Van Zaken
Horst Arts & Music Festival
2024
Theo De Meyer, doorzon interieur architecten, Serban Ionescu
OFFICER’S BAR
As a part of this year’s (2024) expo programme, the experimental collective Stand Van Zaken and multidisciplinary artist Serban Ionescu bundled their expertise for a total redesign of the former Officer’s bar. Once a mere relic of a military past, the space has now evolved into a ‘Gesamtkunstwerk’. The revitalization of the bar is a harmonious blend of circular materials, lively colours, and unexpected fixtures.
The exterior also underwent a metamorphosis, thereby complementing the renovation of the interior finished at the beginning of this year. Inspired by the monumental entrance of Andrea Palladio’s Villa La Rotonda, Stand van Zaken and Serban Ionescu set out to create an accessible and inviting destination for everyone. Visitors are welcomed to the Paradeplein by a central entrance flanked by two sculptures. The side entrance is rethought as a generous user-friendly ramp for wheelchairs and pushchairs.
The mobile furniture allows for a flexible layout and multi-functional use of the space. The tables on wheels fit together as puzzle pieces, so that a central dance floor can appear, crowned by a room-filling chandelier which illuminates the interior. The new tapwall, as an altarpiece, is overlooking the space and ready to quench the thirsty. But the design not only honours the former purpose of this modest building: it moves beyond aesthetics and puts community at the literal centre. Hosted by Bar Bâtard the Officer’s Bar will serve as Asiat Park’s central meeting place where you can enjoy drinks, food and various activities all year around. Besides this, they will also engage with social associations, starting from June onwards. Together with poverty organisation Warmkracht they will host social initiatives and workshops, supporting the local neighbourhood.
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Horst Arts and Music – Announcement LINK
Horst Arts and Music – Video LINK
Architecture Foundation London – Scaffold Podcast 108 LINK
Radio 1 – Culture Club LINK