Space Group / Brisac Gonzalez Share First Prize in Kristiansund Opera and Culture Centre Competition

Following up from yesterday’s news of C.F. Møller’s winning entry, today we present the other first place submission by the team of Space Group (Norway) and Brisac Gonzalez (UK).

Architect Team “Space Group (N) / Brisac Gonzalez (UK)” has won a joint first place in the international architectural competition to design the new opera and culture house in Kristiansund, with the project “Silencio”. The team shares the prize with “CF Møller Architects (N)” and their project “Kulturkvartalet”. Silencio consists of 15 000 m2 opera and cultural house with 600-seat auditorium, library, cultural facilities, restaurants and youth center. Jarmund / Vigsnæs AS Architects, MNAL / Wingårdh architect’s office, North Plan / 70 North / Mestre Wåge Arquitectes and Snøhetta AS also participated in the competition.

SILENCIO
The complex represents culture in its most pervasive and innovative form. To create spaces for the unexpected, spaces to inspire us, spaces where the collective and individual can coexist, to inspire experimentation, invention, heterogeneity and freedom, is to liberate culture.

OVERTURE By amalgamating opera, library, school, voluntary cultural facilities, youth center, the nytt Opera- og Kulturhus Kristiansund represents culture in its most pervasive and innovative form. To create spaces for the unexpected, spaces to inspire us, spaces where the collective and individual can coexist, to inspire experimentation, invention, heterogeneity and freedom is to liberate culture.  

URBAN
There are already two significant buildings on the site – Langveien ungdomskole and Folketshus. To engulf them by a third larger structure will be detrimental, diminishing the integrity of the existing buildings. OKK overcomes the challenges of architectural blurring by introducing a ‘new’ building on the site – liberated and yet connected, complimenting the original vision of the Pedersen plan.

RED CARPET
A procession of movement from entry to restaurant, via The Red Carpet that weaves it way through the building, reveals at once both the rich interior setting and views of Kristiansund. This spatially rich social mixer takes you to all public accessible spaces - in addition to being a space for impromptu performance, reception, cafe and information centre.

THE HALL
Our objective is simple: allow for the greatest number of guests to be as close as possible to the stage, and with perfect sightlines. From the stage, the performers shall see an ocean of people, from wall-to-wall.

Our design for the main hall envisions a fluid framework of wooden coffers that gives continuity in the reading of space, and flexibility in the acoustical definition – tune ability - of the room. The auditorium is flexible, yet it is not generic. Rather a space of multiple states of complete ness.

SNEAK PREVIEW
The fly tower floats, giving rise to an instance where the city and the performance intermingle: a glimpse into the world where fantasy is constructed – a backstage pass for everyone. Sneak Previews afford surprising moments where house, front of house, and back-of-house intermingle.

ROOM WITH A VIEW
On the top floor of the new building restaurant, canteen and orchestra rehearsal room can be combined to create a very large room with spectacular views. An expansive exterior terrace adds greater flexibility in a setting where different scenarios, be they planned, impromptu, or incidental can occur.

FACE
The OKK façade is a curtain to the performance within. From the exterior the perception is of a soft dress, covered in small reflective sequins, shimmering, constantly changing, and flowing.
From the inside, the lighting varies from translucent to transparent, providing an even light throughout the building. The performance remains in focus and the day lighting contributes to the choreography of spaces.

KNOWLEDGE
Folketshus awaits a new future. Our strategy is threefold: a full refurbishment of the building skin, an upgrading of the structure, and an extension of the top floor with roof terrace. The ground floor is conceived as a living room, with spaces for music, newspapers, studying, playing. The café opens graciously to Kongensplass – an urban garden.

BRISAC GONZALEZ (Etbl. 1999, London) is an award-winning international architectural practice based in London. Recent and current projects include: a sports hall under construction in downtown Paris, a 11 000 m2 of music and artist school in the south of France. In Scandinavia, work the practice of a feasibility study for the museum in Copenhagen and its 8000 m2 new premises. Brisac Gonzalez has recently been nominated to draw a mixed use facility including 100 homes in the city of Paris. Edgar Gonzalez, a partner in Brisac Gonzalez, says: - OKK a very interesting project. Not only because of the wide range of activities in new and existing structures, but due. a very unique relationship with our Norwegian colleagues. I am happy to work with another Scandinavian project. We have worked in Sweden before, and is currently working on a feasibility study in the historic center of Copenhagen.