ING Group Headquarters, Amsterdam

The headquarters of the ING Group in Amsterdam is one of the most spectacular buildings of our time. A steel construction with the largest second skin facade in the Netherlands, it had etched itself into public consciousness even before construction began. For obvious associative reasons, the design by Roberto Meyer and Jeroen van Schooten immediately attracted such nicknames as "the shoe," "the handyvac" and "the TGV" (train grande vitesse, or "high-speed train"). More than just an eye- and attention-catching structure, the building is a complex unity of form, space, construction, technique and detail. This publication takes an in-depth look at the ING Group Headquarters, from its mind-boggling structural framework and perfect detailing to its aura of ambience and spatiality. The architects themselves provide a well-founded and precisely detailed description of how and why their architecture fits together. Plans, sections and photographic details complete this photographic monograph of a buidling.