New Age of Stone: Rethinking Natural Stone

Can we build with structural stone again in the Netherlands? And could it offer a sustainable alternative to concrete and brick?

For New Age of Stone, LMNL office and Studio Anna Zan spent a year investigating the potential of natural stone in the Dutch context. They visited quarries, spoke with architects and experts, and researched how stone could contribute to a lower-carbon construction sector.

Natural stone requires relatively little processing, is durable and long-lasting, and can be reused. At the same time, its weight makes transport an important factor. The research therefore focuses on stone sourced within approximately 600 kilometres of the Netherlands.

The project is part of The New Stone Age x NL, a collaborative installation exploring the future of structural stone and geo- and biobased materials. The installation is brought together by LMNL office [for architecture and landscape], Studio Anna Zan, Bamberger Natursteinwerk, GROUPWORK, StudioSpass, The Stonemasonry Company, Webb Yates Engineers and WYSWYG / ARCHITECTURE.

Together, the collaborators ask how a material with centuries of building history can become relevant again in contemporary, climate-conscious architecture.

Discover New Age of Stone as part of the exhibition SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT.