Twisting Thriving Topographies: festive unveiling of the new murals at Langeveld Building

At the end of 2024, the university launched a selection process for artwork in the two stairwells. After a round of sketches involving three artists, Hadassah Emmerich's design emerged as the winner. Together with the Murals Inc. team—Rop Schouten, Sigmund de Jong, and Tim Mastik, and under the leadership of Jelmer Noordeman—her experimental, stencil-based approach was translated to a larger scale. This was a significant achievement, especially considering the building remained fully operational during the project. The (emergency) stairwells are now even more inviting to use and offer students inspiring routes, increasing the likelihood of skipping the elevator (beneficial for both vitality and energy consumption).

The title "Twisting Thriving Topographies" refers to the rhythmic and organic movement in the murals. The work combines historical and cultural references, such as Art Deco and Indonesian batik. In our opinion, it also subtly evokes the airflows circulating through the building.

The Langeveld Building is naturally ventilated using the innovative EWF (Earth, Wind & Fire) system, based on Ben Bronsema's PhD research (Delft University of Technology). This system uses over 85% less energy than fully mechanical ventilation. It is the first educational building to utilize this system. The south facade features solar chimneys. Solar radiation heats the air in these shafts. Warm air rises, pulling used air (return air) out of the building. This return air is collected in these stairwells. Large grilles in the walls—visible in the photos—direct the air toward the solar chimneys and out of the building. Simultaneously, fresh outside air is drawn in through wind-driven grilles on the roof. This air flows into the building and is evenly distributed throughout the educational spaces via wide ducts.

Want to learn more about the EWF system? Watch this video.

Photography: Ossip van Duivenbode