Herzog & de Meuron to revitalise communist-era Palace of Congresses in Tirana
Swiss architecture studio Herzog & de Meuron has revealed plans to update the Palace of Congresses concert venue in Tirana, Albania, with a 260-metre-tall skyscraper.
Herzog & de Meuron will oversee the renovation of the 40-year-old concert venue's existing performance spaces, while introducing a mixed-use office tower and a public plaza.
The studio's proposal seeks to largely preserve the venue's communist-era architecture, which has a symmetrical, monolithic form wrapped in horizontal bands of glazing.
"Our proposal intervenes in the existing building only where necessary," the studio said. "Rather than altering its identity, the project seeks to strengthen its relationship with the city and its public realm."
The Palace of Congresses was originally designed by Klement Kolaneci and completed in 1986. Renders of the proposal reveal the venue's main elevation will remain largely unaltered, but it will be fronted with a newly landscaped public realm.
Meanwhile, at the site's rear, the mixed-use skyscraper will rise above the surrounding landscape, containing offices and a hotel.
Described by Herzog & de Meuron as being "shaped by vernacular logic", the skyscraper will have an angular form complete with a gridded facade and truncated top.
It will sit on an angular plinth with a roof that stretches over the concert venue to double as an accessible terrace.
The site's newly-landscaped plaza, described as a "palace garden", will connect to the building's entrance and is hoped to encourage public gathering.
Inside, a full-height lobby will offer a flexible events space overlooked by upper-floor terraces and illuminated by skylights.
At its core, the venue's existing 2,100-seat concert hall will be updated, with renders revealing a wood-lined interior adorned with concentric cladding and a central oculus.
Also in Tirana, Zaha Hadid Architects has recently unveiled visuals of a housing development with overhanging balconies, while MVRDV is designing a sports arena held within a 100-metre-wide sphere.
Elsewhere, in Paris, Herzog & de Meuron's Tour Triangle skyscraper has topped out at 180 metres.
The renders are courtesy of Herzog & de Meuron.
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