Portfolio of Jonas Bensch

jonas@dontthink.be

+32 473 48 64 02

@jonasbensch

Education.When I was 16, I decided to study Civil Engineering

in Architecture at the Catholic University of Leuven.

During my bachelors I shifted the Centre of gravity

towards the human side and become an honorable

architect. Thus widening my view by adding

psychology, sociology and anthropology to my

regular courses, visiting any lecture or workshop

within my reach and spending holidays at

architecture offices.

Work.The weekend after my graduation I started, as an

architect, in the multi-disciplinary firm called Studio

Arne Quinze. Inevitably the edges of my

architectural cast started to erode by the many other

disciplines such as: interior, furniture and graphic

design…

After some years I orientated myself towards urban

master planning by working for Wit architecten. Next

to it, I have private work in Switzerland and Belgium.

Journey.2006 three months intensive internship at Quinze

and Milan – five days workshop with Zaha Hadid

2007 Studio Arne Quinze – realized a private house

– realized the lounge in Carré Club – designed a

tower in Bucharest – designed two towers in

Brussels

2009 Wit architecten – conceived the master plan for

the quays of Antwerp – designed the master plan for

the rehabilitation Centre in Pellenberg – realized a

shoe store and private house in Geneva

Snapshots.People have the tendency to surround themselves

with things they admire, such as: your friends, your

chairs, your music ... They build a physical library.

Nowadays it is possible to surpass and get rid of

these physical restraints. You can take

pictures, shoot video’s, record sound ... That’ s

why, when I move around, my iPhone is never far

away and I hive away digital data for pos- sible later

use.

Paris

Brussels

Brussels

Somewhere

Miles Aldridge

Caiguoqiang - HeadOn

Workshop - Zaha Hadid.During my fourth year at university I was

assigned, together with two other students, to

participate in a five days international architectural

workshop called: “thinking the future of Symbolic

Places”.

The main objectives was:

- reflecting on the purpose and future of “places of

memory and remembrance”

- research on memorials and heritage

Final work – K.U.L.I decided to locate my thesis in Bucharest, Romania.

A city with an extreme poverty rate, many chaos and

a growing discrepancy between private and public...

Despite these almost inhuman conditions, people

(on their private property) displayed an unrestrained

creativity. Thus I wanted to provide a structure which

did not obstruct the creativity of its future users.

A structure meant for living, working, leisure...

Private residence - Roeselare.Providing an area where shelter is more important

than captivity, materialised through large as well as

small scale gestures. Resulted in two horizontal

plates, framing the surrounding garden from the

inside. The feeling of captivity is countered by

positioning the walls according to an “open corner”

principle. The inevitable straight confrontations are

mitigated and made impalpable by rounded plaster

and plinths.

Tower - Bucharest.The program consisted of 70% offices, 5%

apartments, 15% shops, 10% restaurants and bars.

All together 30.000sqm. The volumetric of the

building is the result of numerous attempts in

convincing Arne Quinze. (of course we couldn’t

make is a NY Sanaa building) Because the plot was

relatively small, the focus lay on a small footprint.

This gave us the chance to create a little landscape

around the base of the building and give the citizens

something in return.

RAC - Brussels.The layout and looks were an idea of “the master”

himself (Arne Quinze). His assertion during the

preliminary phase was “creativity could not be

bonded with money”. And so we went on and

on, convincing the client and the city. The program

wasn’t the easiest one: a hotel

complex, apartments, offices, a museum, a

park, metro connections, underground railroad

restrictions, an electricity hub, the firehouse, the

connection between high and low Brussels...

Carré Lounge - Willebroek.The space literally had to lure its clients inside, as it

didn’t have any connection to the main dance room.

We used bright red colours at the entrance, fading

into dark brown, sand, grey and silver. As the title

suggests, it were all square tiles. This form was a

useful tool for making the tablets attached to the

wall, inserting mirrors in the gradient and stitching all

functions together. All fixed furniture was custom

made and upholstered by Studio Arne Quinze.

Quays of the Scheldt - Antwerp.In 2005 the city of Antwerp and the Flemish

government concluded they needed a planning

strategy for the reconstruction of the Scheldt quays.

The first step in this process was the development of

a master plan that investigates a global attitude for

the public space, the rise of the water barrier and the

quay wall stabilisation. The team composed by Wit

architecten, Proap and D-recta won the international

competition.

Modules

Decompression zone of the city

Different activities

Palimpsest of heritage

Mobility

Water barrier

UZ Pellenberg. - Pellenberg.Wit architecten + Gonçalo Byrne Arquitectos won the

master plan for the revalidation centre in Pellenberg.

The master plan is based on 6 principles. 1 Slim

down the existing building 2 Emphasis the

borderline between forest and open land 3 Propose

two parallel swings 4 Clarify the mobility 5 Use the

hill as a great chance and possibility 6 Provide an

infrastructural backbone as a guide for future

expansions.

Slim down the building Forest vs open land Parallel swings Mobility

Programmatic sections

Shoe store. - Geneva.The store concealed 25sqm floor surface and a 4 m

high ceiling. The client wanted to store, expose and

sell her shoes at those 25sqm. Keeping in mind the

varying size of shoe boxes during winter and

summer.

I divided the store into two parts, a closed part in the

back and an open one in the front. The closed part

consisted of a big storage closet. The open space

was exposition area.

Private residence - Geneva.The less I do the better the result will be.

Demarking freedom and responsibilities among

client and architect was my main task. I did so by

insisting on 3 elements: a cupboard, tablet and floor.

They provide framework and canvas on which the

client can shape its eclecticism.

Who am I to compel clients with a certain way of life.

The new modulor?Start with 30x30cm and multiply by your intuition.

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jonas@dontthink.be

+32 473 48 64 02

@jonasbensch