“Utopia”, the new Library and Academy for Performing Arts in Aalst, Belgium, by Dutch practice KAAN Architecten, takes its name from Thomas More’s eponymous book, first printed in 1516 by prominent Aalst citizen Dirk Martens, often considered the first printer in Flanders. But beyond a literary reference commemorating the printing legacy of this small Flemish town and the transformative role of books, Utopia's name is also meant to convey the venue’s aspirational role as a place of cultural and communal exultation. Although modernist in sensibility, the venue has been masterfully integrated into the town’s historic centre by incorporating an existing heritage building into the design and taking advantage of the area’s irregular streets in order to create three new public squares. Built in the 1880s as a school for the children of soldiers, the existing red-brick structure has been thoroughly renovated and forms the backbone of the development as well as the basis for the new facades.

“乌托邦”(Utopia)是比利时阿尔斯特的新图书馆和表演艺术学院，由荷兰的卡安建筑事务所(Kaan Architecture Ten)创办。它的名字来源于托马斯·莫尔(Thomas More)的同名书，该书最初由著名的阿尔斯特公民德克·马滕斯(Dirk Marten)于1516年出版，通常被认为是佛兰德但是，除了纪念佛兰芒小镇的印刷遗产和书籍的变革作用以外，乌托邦的名字还意味着，作为一个文化和社区兴盛的场所，乌托邦的名字也传达了该场所的理想角色。虽然具有现代感，但该场馆已巧妙地融入了该镇的历史中心，将现有的一座遗产建筑纳入设计，并利用该地区的不规则街道，建立了三个新的公共广场。建于19世纪80年代的兵童学校，对现有的红砖结构进行了彻底的改造，成为发展的中坚力量和新立面的基础。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

The new brickwork adhere to the town’s predominant colour, a dark red hue called “Red Aalst”, but differ in shape, espousing a horizontal format in juxtaposition of to the vertically-oriented façades of the former school. Coupled with the large rectangular windows, which unlike their 19th century counterparts are not uniformly aligned, the distinction between old and new is both pronounced and harmonious. The large areas of glazing puncturing the new building and the enlarged widows of the heritage facades not only allow daylight to illuminate the Academy’s classrooms and studios, but also allow the public to catch glimpses of activities therein. Interestingly, this is also the case inside, where the back of the renovated school looks out onto a large central atrium that accommodates the library.

新的砖块坚持了该镇的主要颜色，一种被称为“红色阿尔斯特”的深红色调，但形状不同，它采用的是一种水平的形式，与前一所学校垂直方向的外墙并置。与19世纪不同的是，大的长方形窗户并不是一致对齐的，新旧之间的区别既明显又和谐。大面积的玻璃穿透新建筑和扩大的遗孀的遗产正面不仅允许日光照亮学院的教室和工作室，而且让公众能够瞥见里面的活动。有趣的是，学校内部的情况也是如此，翻修后的学校的后部可以看到一个容纳图书馆的大型中央中庭。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti

Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti摄

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

At the centre of the building, a three-storey atrium has been designed as a sculptural composition of floating stairs and cantilevered floors, morphed ouy of concrete, which appear to be magically supported by the wooden bookcases piercing through them. It is a truly magnificent space of contemplation and reflection. This overwhelming sensation is amplified by an eleven metre high bookcase that stretches all the way to the roof, filled with books donated by each Aalst resident. Softly illuminated by the daylight filtering through the metal-coloured mesh that covers the entire ceiling, which handily also conceals all the air ducts and cables trays, the atrium and the adjoining reading areas are an oasis of tranquillity. The auditorium and the café-restaurant on the ground floor brandish the building’s public character, whereas most of the Academy’s spaces are housed on either side of the atrium on the first and second floors. Having the library’s reading rooms in close proximity to the dance studios and rehearsal rooms may seem a problematic configuration but the architects have taken great care to ensure their cohabitation is harmonious by perfecting the art of soundproofing. Creaky wooden floors replaced by suspended concrete floors, doors transformed into sound barriers, and double glazed windows ensure that whichever the musical instrument the students are practicing with, no note can be heard in the library areas.

在建筑物的中心，一个三层的中庭被设计成一个浮式楼梯和悬臂地板的雕塑组合，混凝土的变形，似乎被穿过它们的木制书柜神奇地支撑着。这是一个真正宏伟的沉思和反思的空间。这种压倒性的感觉被一个11米高的书架放大了，这个书架一直延伸到屋顶，里面装满了每个Aalst居民捐赠的书。阳光透过覆盖整个天花板的金属色网眼，柔和地照亮了所有的管道和电缆托盘，中庭和毗邻的阅读区都是一片宁静的绿洲。一楼的礼堂和咖啡厅展现了这栋建筑的公共特色，而学院的大部分空间则位于一楼和二楼中庭的两边。让图书馆的阅览室靠近舞蹈室和排练室似乎是一个有问题的配置，但是建筑师们已经非常小心地通过完善隔音艺术来确保他们的同居是和谐的。摇摇欲坠的木地板被悬挂的混凝土地板所取代，门变成了隔音屏障，双层玻璃窗确保了无论学生练习的乐器是哪一种，在图书馆区域都听不到音符。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Of course, there could not be a utopia without a sustainable habitat and indeed, the new building has been designed to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Materials and labour were locally sourced, low-energy machines were used for construction, and rainwater is recuperated and buffered, while solar panels, geothermal heat and LED lighting ensure that the building’s energy use is both minimal and sustainably generated. Then again, we did not expect anything less from such a utopian building that has already been so warmly embraced by the community.

当然，如果没有一个可持续的栖息地，就不可能有一个乌托邦。事实上，这座新建筑的设计是为了尽可能地对环境友好。材料和劳动力来自当地，低能耗的机器用于建筑，雨水得到恢复和缓冲，而太阳能电池板、地热能和发光二极管照明则确保建筑物的能源使用是最低限度的和可持续产生的。不过，我们并没有预料到这样一幢已经受到社会热烈欢迎的乌托邦式建筑，会有什么不一样的地方。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Marco Cappelletti.

图片来源：Delfino Sisto Legnani和Marco Cappelletti。

keywords:Architecture Cultural 

关键词：建筑文化