The Fenix Museum of Migration occupies a restored warehouse on Rotterdam's industrial waterfront, linked historically to migrant departures. MAD transformed the building with a tornado-shaped, occupiable staircase formed by two spirals that cross, separate, and join at observation platforms overlooking the sea. The design frames continuity between past and present, inviting reflection on arrival, departure, and reasons for migration. The museum functions as an active civic landmark, shaped by visitor movement and light. The project aligns with experiential monuments at a similar scale while emphasizing cultural resonance and adaptive reuse of maritime industrial fabric.
The Fenix Museum of Migration by MAD has now been open in Rotterdam for several months, establishing itself as an iconic civic landmark along the city's industrial waterfront. Rising above the historic port district, the museum occupies a restored warehouse once tied to the flow of migrants who departed from Rotterdam for destinations across the world. Now, with newly captured images months after its opening in May 2025, the project can be understood as not just a renovation, but as an active and lived-in landmark shaped by visitors' reflections and spiraling movement.
At the heart of the Fenix Museum of Migration in Rotterdam, MAD's tornado-shaped staircase has emerged as the defining element. Two spirals rise independently, crossing and separating before joining at platforms that overlook the coastal Dutch city. The team at MAD compares the project to similar occupiable monuments such as Heatherwick Studio's now-iconic Vessel or the Little Island along New York's Hudson River: ' These projects, like the tornado, operate at a similar scale and share a strong commitment to experiential design.'
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