Zorgvlied Crematorion fitting way of leave-taking
Crematorion Zorgvlied, completed and opened April this year, is recently beautifully photographed by Digidaan.
Zorgvlied Crematorion, situated in the historical Zorgvlied Cemetery in Amsterdam, represents a new approach to cremation. It allows mourners to accompany the remains of their beloved as far as possible towards the cremation furnace. GROUP A designed the innovative structure that makes this new approach possible.
The Crematorion is a stand-alone building, housing a cremation furnace and processing room, without an auditorium. The structure is designed to focus the minds on the ritual of leave-taking. The next of kin get to choose whether they want to leave the casket in the special forecourt, or whether they want to enter it into the furnace themselves. The 16-metre high Crematorion is carefully embedded in the leafy surroundings of the cemetery and has a base made of stone and a light, tent-like superstructure above it, ending into a glass covered opening. The contrasting materials symbolise the tension between the heaviness of the earth and the insubstantiality of the heavenly.