A couple of years ago I met a senior officer in the City of London Police at the opening of an office building by Norman Foster. Then, I was saddened at how he saw the future of police stations; more like corner shops rather than imposing edifices. He even mused about renting a corner of the office we were then standing in. I sobbed into my Chardonnay at the loss of an archetype, and presumably work for architects.
But in Charleroi, Belgium, Jean Nouvel and MDW Architecture harbour no such pretension to meekness. Here the proposed police headquarters building towers over its neighbours, imposing and menacing in dark blue brick... a contemporary interpretation of a medieval Mott and Bailey. That is one interpretation anyway, another might be a beacon of law and order reassuring the community it protects. I am torn between the two. Another interesting aspect of this proposal is the extension of the Charleroi/Danses - a dance company. I am trying to imagine a more incongruous mixture of program for a development.
Words: Christopher C. Hill
