herzog & de meuron: cultural complex luz, sao paulo

‘cultural complex luz’ by herzog & de meuron, sao paulo, brasilimage © herzog & de meuron

adding to the growing cultural district of sao paulo, brasil, the ‘cultural complex luz’ by renowned practice herzog & de meuron will contribute tothe already prominent concert hall, the free university of music, the sao paulo state pinacoteca, and the museum of sacred art, amongst others,and is a key component to the revitalization of luz. the interdisciplinary center, begun in 2009 and scheduled for inauguration in 2016, will combinedance and music, amateurs with professionals, and performers with spectators in a 1750-seat theater, 500-seat recital hall, and 400-seat flexibleexperimental theater. the program is divided and accessed in a unique way that supports open circulation and collaboration amongst diverse groups.the project re-envisions the regular archetypal street grid and stacks it in perpendicular orientations at half levels, creating a weaved mesh of rectangularelements that allow the free movement of guests between the static creative nodes, infilled with lush vegetation and trees. the grand ramp protrudesfrom the structure like an elevated entry promenade that also contains an outdoor performance venue and connects to the 850-car underground parking garage. the entry sequence presents the user with a lively, layered series of spaces that act as a three-dimensional public square servicing each function:the 2000-student music school, cafe, garden, ticket booth, or dance company. the three performance venues are located within the voids of the meshand anchor the interlocked matrix of ramps onto the site.

concept animationvideo courtesy of PINIweb

aerial viewimage © herzog & de meuron

site in the urban context injects a dense green areaimage © herzog & de meuron

stacking and layering of crossing rectangular planesimage © herzog & de meuron

social spaces in open air courtyards and gardensimage © herzog & de meuron

impromptu performance spacesimage © herzog & de meuron

image © herzog & de meuron

dance theaterimage © herzog & de meuron

image © herzog & de meuron

layering of program(red) theaters(yellow) public areas(pink) dance company(orange) school of music(grey) support spacesimage © herzog & de meuron

floor planimage © herzog & de meuron

floor planimage © herzog & de meuron

project info:

partners: jacques herzog, pierre de meuron, ascan mergenthaler (partner in charge), markus widmerproject team: tomislav dushanov (associate, project director), marcelo bernardi (project manager), iva smrke (associate, project architect), kentaro ishida (associate), stefan göddertz (associate), nicholas lyons (associate)client: governo do estado de são paulo (secretaria de estado da cultura), são paulo, brazil