Markthal turns Rotterdam’s market into a vaulted city room

Markthal is a covered food market in central Rotterdam, housed beneath a vast residential arch. The building’s grey stone exterior gives little indication of the colourful artwork spread across the market hall’s inner vault.

Designed by Rotterdam practice MVRDV and opened on 1 October 2014, Markthal combines apartments, food shops, restaurants, a supermarket and an underground car park in one building.

Markthal’s arch frames a covered market

The building measures 120 metres long, 70 metres wide and 40 metres high. Its curved volume forms a sheltered public hall, with the market floor occupying the space beneath the apartments.

Glass façades close the two broad ends of the arch. Their transparent surfaces leave the interior artwork visible from the surrounding streets, while the grey natural-stone exterior continues the colour of Rotterdam’s pavements.

The Binnenrotte setting and Rotterdam’s market tradition

Markthal stands beside the Binnenrotte in the Laurenskwartier district, close to Blaak station and the Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk. The location places the building among Rotterdam’s historic centre, rail connections and open-air market space.

The city’s market life gives the building a practical setting. Inside, fresh produce stalls, food shops, restaurants and a supermarket share the lower levels, while homes occupy the arch above them.

Arno Coenen’s artwork fills the vault

The interior artwork is titled Horn of Plenty and was created by Arno Coenen and Iris Roskam. It covers the ceiling and inner walls with oversized fruit, vegetables, flowers, insects and other food-related imagery.

The work uses intense colour against the hall’s structural surfaces. Viewed from the market floor, the imagery forms a continuous canopy above the stalls, while the glass façades reveal portions of it from outside.

MVRDV’s Markthal project was completed in 2014 and has a total surface of about 95,000 square metres. The building’s mixed programme gives the market hall a scale that extends beyond a single retail interior.

Visiting Markthal: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• Markthal is on Dominee Jan Scharpstraat beside the Binnenrotte in central Rotterdam. Blaak station provides train, metro and tram connections.
• The market hall is an enclosed urban space beneath residential floors. Its two glazed end façades provide the principal visual connection with the surrounding streets.
• The Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk stands near Markthal in the Laurenskwartier. The Binnenrotte’s open-air market space lies beside the building.
• The official language is Dutch and the currency is the euro.

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Frequently asked questions about Markthal

Where is Markthal?

Markthal is beside the Binnenrotte in Rotterdam’s Laurenskwartier district. Blaak station and the Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk are nearby.

What can visitors see inside Markthal?

The interior contains fresh food stalls, shops and restaurants beneath the residential arch. Horn of Plenty covers the vault with large food-themed images.

What makes Markthal distinctive?

Its 120-metre arch combines housing with a covered market. The curved interior and its extensive artwork create the building’s defining public space.