MITH – CUM LAUDE Beatriz Ramo is Mentor for a Graduation Project at AAS in Tilburg:

October 1, 2010

Beatriz Ramo was the mentor of the Graduation Project of Dennis van de Rijdt, student at the Fontys Academie voor Architectuur en Stedenbouw, in Tilburg.
Dennis’s project, entitled MITH – Mediation Institute The Hague, was awarded the CUM LAUDE qualification on October 1^st, 2010, upon the public presentation at the AAS in Tilburg.

Tilburg Academie voor Architectuur en Stedenbouw
Graduation project: Dennis van der Rijdt: MITH, Mediation Institute The Hague
Mentor – Cum Laude
Research / Design Project
Master of Architecture
Tilburg, the Netherlands
December 2009 – October 2010

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MITH – Mediation Institute The Hague
Where Mediation takes shape.

The Mediation Institute of The Hague (MITH) is the result of a one-year research-based design process. It reacts to different scales beyond the pure architectural object. It analyzed successfully how the city of The Hague – from its urban setup to its representative image – could influence and benefit the design of the building, and vice versa.
Although the design reacts to the specific context of Den Haag and its proposed masterplan, the building also has a strong conceptual base that would allow implementation as a typology in many locations.

We present a new typology of building: the Mediation Institute. The programme itself is not new, but it is the first time that Mediation is the generator of an entire building and is materialized in concrete architectural volumes. Mediation takes shape.
The design studies the possibilities of the box as an architectural object vs. today’s extravagant architectural icons. The complexity is reserved for the interior. In this way, the Peace Palace maintains its presence in the legal skyline of Den Haag. The Mediation Institute enters into dialogue with it, but does not overshadow it.
The MITH proposes challenging contrasts between overdesigned elements vs. neutral spaces; regular exterior volume vs Piranesi-esque interior spaces; extreme security vs. public accessibility; diagrammatic clarity vs. surprising perceptions; conceptual thinking vs. adaptation to the context.

The MITH achieved to turn a programme that used to be private and required high levels of security, into a public, accessible, and attractive programme for Den Haag tourists and inhabitants.