Rotterdam ROCKS! is the wildest building proposal we’ve seen in years.

Wild, Growing Landmark Concept Features Living Rocks

MVRDV wants to stack a mountain of living, breathing rock formations on Rotterdam’s waterfront. We’re obsessed.

Imagine looking up at a mountain of moss-draped rocks, stacked and interlocked, with greenery spilling out of every crevice, and then walking inside through what looks like the mouth of an enormous turtle.

That’s Rotterdam ROCKS!, MVRDV’s proposal for the city’s new Shift Landmark, and the most delightfully unhinged piece of architecture we’ve seen pitched in a long time.

MVRDV, based in Rotterdam, fittingly, describe it as “rocks that breathe.” Massive sculptural volumes broken apart and piled high, with air, light, and vegetation threading through every gap.

The mass is inhabited. The crevices are the point. Their team includes Joris Laarman Lab, pioneers of 3D printing for urban greening, which hints that this isn’t just a building that looks like nature, it’s one actively exploring new ways of fabricating and growing the city at the same time.

Inside: a 10,000 m² immersive experience dedicated to circular living, plus a hotel, conference centre, and sustainable food court, all within a €240 million, 30,000 m² landmark planned for Rotterdam’s emerging Waterkant waterfront district.

Rotterdam has always said yes to the audacious. The Erasmus Bridge, the Market Hall, the cube houses. Rotterdam ROCKS! fits right in. The competition winner is announced this spring. Read more on DesignBoom.

Images via MVRDV