Take On Add Away - The Transformation of the Palais des Expositions in Charleroi

This book documents the transformation of the Palais des Expositions in Charleroi, Belgium. Originally built between 1948 and 1953, the exhibition complex represented the pride of Belgian industry during its heyday. After decades of disuse, an international competition led to a radical redesign by AgwA and architecten jan de vylder inge vinck. In order to reduce the usable area without demolishing whole sections of the building, the architects transformed about a fifth of the building’s volume from an interior to an exterior space, reconnecting the formerly closed complex with the city. The book explores this innovative strategy of “subtractive transformation”.