Demolition of Studio Fuksas concert hall underway in Tbilisi
Work has begun on the demolition of the never-opened Rike Concert Hall in Tbilisi, which was designed by Italian practice Studio Fuksas.
Local news organisation TV Pirveli filmed the cladding being removed from the Rike Concert Hall in central Tbilisi last week.
The work began less than two weeks after the Tbilisi city hall architecture department issued a permit allowing the building's owner to demolish the concert hall.
Designed by Studio Fuksas, the building in the central Rike Park has remained empty and closed since 2012, when it was largely complete.
The building was built as part of a rejuvenation plan for the city enacted under previous president Mikheil Saakashvili.
Georgia's change of government in 2012 is largely seen as the reason the project was abandoned, with the concert hall connected to the previous regime.
The extremely distinctive building consists of two tube-shaped volumes that open out onto the riverside park. Each of the tubes was covered in square stainless-steel panels that resemble scales.
In the news report published by TV Pirveli last week, a video was captured showing these cladding panels being removed and the structure underneath exposed.
The demolition has begun less than 15 years after construction of the building's structure was largely complete, although the internal fit-out never happened.
After a decade of closure, the building was sold to a property developer in 2022, who in turn sold it to the current owner – Makro Constructions – in 2025.
Following news of the planned demolition last month, Studio Fuksas described the plans as "a significant cultural setback". In a statement to Dezeen, it claimed that the studio had received no response to efforts to contact the local government.
"Over the past months, the studio repeatedly offered to work with the Georgian authorities to explore alternative solutions that could preserve and repurpose this iconic building, avoiding what we believe would be a premature and irreversible demolition," said the studio.
"Unfortunately, these proposals have received no response."
The photography is courtesy of Studio Fuksas.
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