Alexandra Zoupa
Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
VISION
'In 2006, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (www.SNF.org) announced its plans to fund the development of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), a project that includes the construction and complete outfitting of new facilities for the National Library of Greece (NLG) and the Greek National Opera (GNO), as well as the creation of the 170,000 m² Stavros Niarchos Park.
Education and culture are the backbone of any advanced society.
In funding the SNFCC, the Foundation’s vision is to provide the country and the city with the new institutional foundations it needs to move forward and with a framework for the future.
Education, culture and sustainability, the SNFCC’s three main elements, are essential requirements in enhancing the potential of the city and its people and placing them within a twenty first century global context.
The magnitude of the project and of the Foundation’s dreams and hopes required the impact and the creative presence of a visionary architect.
In February 2008, following a closed international design competition, the Foundation’s Board of Directors unanimously selected the Renzo Piano Building Workshop (www.rpbw.com).
In selecting renowned architect Renzo Piano, the Foundation chose an architect at the forefront of the architectural profession, who possesses vision, intellectual curiosity and a historical and geographical understanding of the project’s location and significance.
The project site is located 4.5 km south of the center of Athens, on the edge of Faliro Bay, and the SNFCC is designed as a multifunctional arts, education and entertainment complex.
The project’s budget is €566,000,000. Upon SNFCC’s completion, the Foundation will transfer the control of the center to the Greek state, which will assume its full operation and management.
The SNFCC is the first private-public partnership of its type in Greece, and one of the most important civic (cultural/educational) projects ever undertaken in the country.
As one of the largest construction projects in recent Greek history, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center will have an immediate impact on the local economy, providing jobs and infusing capital into a challenging economic landscape.'
Source: http://www.snfcc.org/about-the-snfcc/vision/
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROJECT
'The Stavros Niarchos Cultural Centre will be constructed in Kallithea, 3km south of central Athens.
An important cultural and educational project, the site will comprise the National Library of Greece and the Greek National Opera in a 170,000 sq. m (1.83M sq. ft) landscaped park.
Currently a parking lot left over from the 2004 Olympic Games, when complete the project will restore the site’s lost connections with the city and the sea.
As one of Athens’ earliest seaports on Faliro Bay, Kallithea has always had a strong relationship with the water.
At present, however, despite its proximity, there is no view of the sea from the site.
To restore this, an artificial hill is being created at the south (seaward) end of the site.
The sloping park will culminate in the cultural centre building, giving it spectacular views towards the sea.
Both opera and library are combined in one building, with a public space, known as the Agora, providing access and connections between the two main facilities.
The opera wing will be composed of two auditoria, one (450 seats) dedicated to traditional operas and ballets, the other (1400 seats) for more experimental performances.
The library is intended not only as a place for learning and preserving culture, but also as a public resource, a space where culture is truly accessible to share and enjoy.
The entirely glass-walled library reading room sits on top of the building just underneath the canopy roof.
A square horizontal transparent box, it will enjoy 360-degree views of Athens and the sea.
The site’s visual and physical connection with water will continue in the park with a new canal that will run along a north–south, main pedestrian axis, the Esplanade.
The striking canopy roof provides essential shade and will be topped with 100 sq. m (1,080 sq. ft) of photovoltaic cells, enough to generate 1.5 megawatt of power for the library and opera house.
This field of cells should allow the building to be self-sufficient in energy terms during normal opening hours.
Wherever possible, natural ventilation will be used.
The complex is aiming for a LEED platinum rating.
The project is due for completion at the end of 2015.'
Source:
http://www.rpbw.com/project/83/stavros-niarchos-foundation-cultural-center/
Pictures:
http://www.rpbw.com/project/83/stavros-niarchos-foundation-cultural-center/
