The Bright Underside of the Willem II Passage
If you’ve ever walked underneath a freeway or bridge, you know that it can be an intimidating experience. More often that not, it’s a hasteful walk to get to the other side, with cars, trains, and trucks that weigh many more tons than you whizzing above your head. During the day, it can be an uncomfortable walk. At night, depending on the neighborhood, it can be a dreadful one, with potential dangers lurking in every shadow.
In Tilburg, a city in the southwestern part of the Netherlands, Civic Architects pulled out all the stops to animate the underside of one overpass linking the city center with a once neglected, now redeveloped part of town known as De Spoorzone. Officially called the Willem II Passage (an extension of Willem II Street), it serves as a safe and convenient cultural space and point of connection.
The passage serves as an inviting link between two areas — one that people do not fear passing through. The architects opted for glass bricks instead of a more high-tech material because they wanted to bring a human scale to the underside of an otherwise oversized piece of infrastructure. The bricks have an almost natural look to them, despite their having been stacked in an overtly purposeful pattern. The result is a continuous visual connection between the passage and Tilburg’s other architectural wonders, particularly the ones on Willem II Street. People have become so comfortable with the passage that they’ve even started using it for cultural activities and events.