Space Encounters Office for Architecture

Space Encounters has been commissioned by Natuurmonumenten to redesign the Visitor Center of the National Park Veluwezoom in Rheden. The park is visited by over two million people each year, and the Veluwezoom visitor center is the starting point for many of the walks, bike rides, and recreational activities in the surrounding forests and fields. It also serves as a place to inspire and educate visitors through permanent and temporary exhibitions.

The current visitor center is composed of five parts, amongst which two historical monumental farms built in 1866. The 2007 extension of a glazed central body connects the two farms with the other three parts, accommodating a restaurant, VVV tourist office, bike rental and the offices for the Natuurmonumenten staff.

The goal of the transformation is to open up the building to the landscape, making it a more inviting and welcoming space. Space Encounters proposed a seemingly minimal approach that respects and maintains the current state. Wooden slats wrap the glazed central body, filtering daylight and providing thermal comfort without the need to replace the existing glass façade. These slats also serve a structural role, supporting the roof garden — a lush green layer that reflects the building’s nature-inclusive program and character. The ambition is for nature to not merely be an addition but to become an active presence in the design of the building. Informative gardens, green play areas, and a terrace hosting an outdoor exhibition are integrated into the landscape, preserving the existing sense of intimacy within the Veluwezoom Visitor Center while emphasizing its role as the environmental education hub of the area.