Glass Crown: Studio Libeskind’s Boerentoren Redesign Antwerp

Prime Highlights

Studio Libeskind unveils Antwerp Boerentoren landmark with new glass crown and cultural venues.
New design blends Art Deco heritage with public access today and panoramic architecture.

Key Facts

Final height settled at around 103 meters, including new glass four-storey building.
More than €100 million already invested in restoration and asbestos removal.

Key Background

Studio Libeskind and Belgian practice ELD have unveiled a fresh design concept for the redevelopment of Antwerp’s Boerentoren as a center for cultural symbols. The skyscraper, originally finished in 1932 and well known throughout Europe as one of its first skyscrapers, will have atop it an extended new, carved glass spire that fully integrates with its Art Deco historic form. The tower will contain an arts space for the Phoebus Foundation and a new cultural tourist destination in the city center of Antwerp.

Renovation keeps the steel structure and triangular floor plan of the tower intact but substitutes the original extrovert 2022 design with an extrovert yet more elegant take that is also integrated in nature. The redesigned glass crown has four stories to a height of approximately 103 meters—a little shorter than the city’s Our Lady Cathedral. The replica takes into account public perception by residents and government officials while retaining Libeskind’s diagonal steel shapes in the glass. Double glass elevators will pierce through the façade, giving the public a vertical experiential journey through the structure.

Within, a beautiful carved atrium called the “city living room,” will be an open public area replete with exhibits, performances, and events. A sculpture garden on a mezzanine on the 12th floor provides a distinctive green oasis for visitors and city views. The emphasis is on developing an engaged cultural center linking heritage to urban access.

Since it was acquired in 2021 by logistics company Katoen Natie, more than €100m has been spent to renovate the tower. Part of the steps taken include demolishing the asbestos completely and strengthening the building. The new plan is being reviewed by Antwerp’s urban planning commission at the moment and announcements are anticipated early in July. If approved, it will take two years to construct, with an eye towards opening to the public in 2028. This redevelopment will be a new page in Boerentoren history—a harmonious synergy of architectural heritage and progressive civic purpose.