The Ark

The Ark is the entrance to the park, LABIOMISTA’s interface with the world. It’s an eye-catching reception building, erected in black brick and polished concrete. This is where visitors are introduced to Koen Vanmechelen’s work and to LABIOMISTA itself and are offered an introduction to the site.

Both the reception building’s look and its location link it to The Battery, Vanmechelen’s studio and the site’s artistic engine room. Raised in the same black stone – a reference to the location’s history as a coal mining site – both buildings also resonate with each other via the simplicity and symmetry of their playful geometries. The Ark and the Battery were designed by Swiss architect Mario Botta (°1943), and were realised in collaboration with the artist.

  • Location: former entrance gate of the director’s villa
  • Function: site reception area, welcoming visitors, providing information, selling tickets and other products
  • Architect: Mario Botta (CH), in collaboration with the architectural firm Buro B
  • Installations and artwork by Koen Vanmechelen: Under Pressure, SOTWA, The Guardian
  • Scenography: design by Voet en De Brabandere, production by Casa Vero