Modern Architecture on a Historic Harbour
POSTED BY Verena Dreikauß
May 05, 2011
Herzog & de Meuron are a Swiss based architectural studio famous for their minimalist creations. Their most recent structures constitute an original organic construction; the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Olympic Summer Games, the Allianz Arena in Munich, and currently in construction, the Philharmonic Hall in Hamburg.
“They refine the traditions of modernism to elemental simplicity, while transforming materials and surfaces through the exploration of new treatments and techniques” ~ A. L. Huxtable, Pritzker Award juror.
The Elbphilharmonie is located in one of the oldest areas of Hamburg’s harbour, the Kaiser Quay. The base of the new Concert Hall is the 19,000 square meter large historic Kaiserspeicher. It is a brick stoned warehouse built in 1875 that once stored tea, cocoa and tobacco until it was abandoned.
Built on top the modern creation of Herzog & de Meuron, is a cube in the shape of waves assembled in reflecting glass. The new landmark is not only home of three concerts hall but also inhabits a 4,000 square meter Plaza, a 360° observation deck, a hotel and 45 apartments.
The Large Concert Hall, center of the building and visible from the outside, contains more than 2,000 seats that are winding in a vineyard-like architecture around the center of the auditorium. In order to improve the acoustics a special material was developed that covers the hall’s wall – the White Skin which reflects the sound better into all directions.
Hamburg’s new cultural center will open in the beginning of 2012.
Links: Herzog & de Meuron / The Elbphilharmonie
“They refine the traditions of modernism to elemental simplicity, while transforming materials and surfaces through the exploration of new treatments and techniques” ~ A. L. Huxtable, Pritzker Award juror.
The Elbphilharmonie is located in one of the oldest areas of Hamburg’s harbour, the Kaiser Quay. The base of the new Concert Hall is the 19,000 square meter large historic Kaiserspeicher. It is a brick stoned warehouse built in 1875 that once stored tea, cocoa and tobacco until it was abandoned.
Built on top the modern creation of Herzog & de Meuron, is a cube in the shape of waves assembled in reflecting glass. The new landmark is not only home of three concerts hall but also inhabits a 4,000 square meter Plaza, a 360° observation deck, a hotel and 45 apartments.
The Large Concert Hall, center of the building and visible from the outside, contains more than 2,000 seats that are winding in a vineyard-like architecture around the center of the auditorium. In order to improve the acoustics a special material was developed that covers the hall’s wall – the White Skin which reflects the sound better into all directions.
Hamburg’s new cultural center will open in the beginning of 2012.
Links: Herzog & de Meuron / The Elbphilharmonie
