City Archive Delft

Office Winhov and Gottlieb Paludan Architects designed the new City Archive of Delft.

The Delft Archive is an important building for the city. It is the place to store and access the history of this old city; it is treasure room, study room and time machine in one. The new archive building is situated at the closing head of a narrow park that connects the site to the historic centre of Delft. The building has a compact organisation with offices, workshops and reading rooms at the ground floor and the archive depots in the floors above. The efficient layout allows for flexible use whilst supporting the sustainability of the building. The public reading rooms are situated along the entire facade facing the park and form the welcoming address of the building. The brick facade expresses the timeless and robust character of the building with storage as its main purpose. The rich relief in the facade connects the building to the elaborated tradition of brick buildings in Delft. The white concrete plinth clearly refers to the image of the public buildings in the historic centre of the city.