Volume two of a three-part journal documenting the unique collaborative design and construction process to convert a 1930s car factory in Brussels into Kanal, an arts and culture center.

Kanal #2: Making is part two of a three-part journal by Atelier Kanal, a consortium formed by architecture firms EM2N (Zurich), noAarchitecten (Brussels), and Sergison Bates Architects (London and Zurich). It is dedicated entirely to the actual building of the Kanal arts and culture center in Brussels and the challenges that the architects, engineers, construction firms, and their client faced during the construction process. The project is exemplary due to its scope and scale: repurposing, restoration, partial demolition, and rebuilding of the entire former Citroën garage, with a floor space of 49,000 square meters and an iconic twenty-one-meter-high showroom.

The Kanal project is significant within contemporary architecture discourse because it encompasses several intertwined, key topics: the task of transforming a notable existing building, the demand to minimize demolition and waste while the entire vast structure is repurposed completely, the revaluation of comfort standards in relation to public spaces and uses, and the interventions required by the intended new purpose of the structure.

Kanal #2: Making explores these questions through texts and a wealth of visual material that played a core role in Atelier Kanal’s collaborative process. The book explains strategic considerations and investigates the challenges and risks inherent to such an undertaking, as well as the inspiring insights that working with an existing structure of this scale entails.