City Centre
A wealth of modern architecture can also be found downtown in historic Antwerp.
Renowned as well as young emerging architects designed new projects strongly embedded in the historic context. Italian-based Studio Secchi-Viganò, for example, demonstrates with their re-design of the Antwerp Theatre Square (2008) how a simple but carefully thought-through concept can transform not just the public space but also its surroundings.
In 2011 architect Vincent Van Duysen designed a new youth hostel on Bogaarde Square. The new building blends in very well with its surroundings as its colours and materials mimic the neighbouring facades.