Smaragd by M3H Architects

Smaragd by M3H Architects is an Amsterdam housing project that combines 102 homes, catering spaces, offices and parking in a dense urban setting.

The project is interesting because it deals with the kind of question many cities face: how to add high-quality housing in a difficult neighbourhood while still respecting local architectural character.

Project images

What the project includes

The Smaragd includes homes, hospitality, office space and a parking garage. It sits between different periods of Amsterdam’s built fabric, including nineteenth-century buildings and architecture from the 1920s and 1940s.

M3H’s response references the Amsterdam School without turning the project into pastiche. The raised head, rounded corners, brickwork and material combinations give the building a strong civic presence.

Why it won attention

• It shows how housing can be added in a densified city.
• It responds to local history without copying it literally.
• It combines different residents and uses in one urban project.
• It was recognised with the Zuiderkerk Prize in 2016.

Built project lesson

A housing project page should explain the city problem as well as the building. Density, resident mix, context, delivery and facade strategy all matter if the page is going to teach anything useful.

Architecture Social view

Stephen’s recruiter view is that housing experience becomes much more valuable when candidates and practices can explain context, constraints and delivery. Smaragd gives a useful example of that kind of project story.

If this project has made you rethink your own portfolio or next move, browse current architecture jobs or contact Architecture Social for a recruiter’s view.