Langdon Reis Zahn's Entry for Library and Concert Hall Competition in Bodø

Just a few days ago, we reported on drdharchitects’s winning proposal in the international competition to design a new library and concert hall in Bodø, Norway.

Here is another exciting proposal for Bodø‘s new cultural center that made it into the shortlist, by London-based Langdon Reis Zahn in collaboration with 4B Arkitekter and Gullik Gulliksen Landscape Arkitekter.

This is how the architects describe their project:

The Bodø Kulturhus and Library consists of two public buildings; a new city library (5,500m²) and a concert hall/theatre (7,350m²), with a construction budget of approximately 800,000,000 NOK.

Following the judging of the second round DRDH Architects have been selected to build the theatre/concert hall and the library.

Bodø’s new cultural centre will be:

• a social, public and communal space;
• a space that connects both the local community and its visitors;
• a space that responds to the expectations and imagination of both the local community and its visitors – tourists and/or migrants;
• a space that enhances the local democratic and social traditions, as well as the natural and pre-existing built environment;
• a space that seeks interaction (open to communal and diverse ranges of activities), playfulness and poetic contemplation
• an accessible space, a place to be proud of and belong to.
• a glistening jewel which plays with the diverse qualities of light in the arctic region and brings the spectacular atmosphere of the northern landscape into the buildings
• an urban project that seeks to create a cultural ecology
• a space intrinsically linked to the sense of human scale, participation and creativity. 

Building Synergy
The Bodø Nye Kulturhus and the Bibliotek need to be intrinsically linked both through their own architecture, and by the space in between. This interstitial space must be cohesive, connected, fluid and dynamic. It must define and delimit the cultural precinct, whilst connecting to other public spaces located in the immediate vicinity and in other parts of the city. Together the buildings must form an ensemble of parts that make up a clearly identifiable and distinctive precinct that will leave a lasting memory in the minds of both locals and visitors to Bodø.
The diverse activities- recreational, cultural, communal and commercial, must collide and intersect to create a vibrant and dynamic cultural ecology.  The buildings must form the foundations for this activity to occur.

Built form hypothesis
The built forms take their initial inspiration from the merging between natural and artificial landscapes i.e. the natural glacial topographies/fjords and the rigid city grid. The buildings merge with the ground, almost as if carved from the same solid mass.  They stand like rocks in a stream. 
The forms of the buildings are in harmony with their surroundings, both natural and man-made.  They have been shaped in response to view corridors, solar access, wind, visibility and access.
Careful manipulation of the building forms and the creation of sheltered entrances aims to slow passers-by and provide shelter from extreme weather when needed.
The aesthetic qualities of the buildings seek to both connect and contrast with the existing urban fabric with respect and understanding.  Heights have been set so as not to dominate the existing buildings.

Façade Concept
Both the Bodo Nye Kulturhus and the Bibliotek are clad using the same façade system.  The solidity and continuity of the two building’s facades strengthens links across the sites and clearly defines the new cultural precint. The façade emphasises the carved geometries of the buildings by creating large planar surfaces that include subtle creases and directional lines that relate to views, wind and access to light.  The interplay of faceted surfaces means the building will take on a wide variety of qualities when viewed from different angles or at different times of the day, whether it’s clear and sunny, overcast or dark.

The Ceramic Tile Panel
The tiled panel will be approximately 1.5m X 3m.  The tiles themselves will be 600mm X 200mm with one splayed edge.  When viewed from a distance the large panels will be recognisable and when viewed in close proximity the individual tiles will be more dominant. The tiles themselves may come from Hoganas, the company who made the Sydney Opera House tiles (a homage to Utzon), they will be white ceramic, however some tiles will be lightly pigmented using natural ochres from the regions around Bodo, colours will range from brown, red and yellow. These colours will give the buildings a dynamic quality and a soft elegance that will reflect the surrounding landscapes, sky, buildings and light, in many ways.

Pattern + Shape
The shape of the single tile is an abstraction derived from drying codfish on traditional timber structures (please refer to diagram). Each tile has one splayed edge, the adjacent tile is then rotated 180º to form a rectangle between two tiles.  This pattern is then repeated across each panel. From a distance the pattern jumps in scale ,12 tiles form one panel.  The panels are placed parallel to the angle of the facets they are on..  This means on each facet the tile pattern creates lines that slightly change in direction, helping reinforce the buildings shape, and referencing the rock formations near the Saltstraumen.

Images: Langdon Reis Zahn