Powder Coatings Help Markthal Rotterdam Achieve Vibrant Indoor Mural
The Markthal Rotterdam, the first indoor market and housing development in the Netherlands, opened in October, 2014 after five years of construction at a total estimated cost of €175 million. Designed by Dutch architects MVRDV, the arch-shaped structure houses a bustling indoor fresh-food market surrounded by restaurants, food shops and hospitality units topped with 10 stories of 228 distinctive apartments. During the day it serves as central market hall, and after hours, the hall becomes an enormous, covered, well-lit public space.
A mural by Dutch artists Arno Coenen and Iris Roskam decorates the inner walls of the 40-meter-high arch. Titled “Horn of Plenty,” the mural brings to life a colossal, colorful array of fruits, vegetables, flowers and insects with a nod to the work of 17th century Dutch still life masters. The larger-than-life mural conveys the desired effect using Valspar’s coatings and a sublimation printing process on 4,000 perforated aluminum panels. Encompassing 11,000 square meters, the mural has earned such nicknames as the “biggest artwork in the world” and the “Sistine Chapel of Rotterdam.”