massimiliano fuksas: the peres peace house now open

the exterior of the peres peace house all images courtesy of fuksas architects

peres peace house designed by architect massimilano fuksas and local israeli architect yoav messer, is finally in use. yesterday, staff moved into the new building in jaffa, israel along the shores of the mediterranean sea.

for the building, fuksas imagined a series of layers, representing time and patience. the outside of the building consists of alternating layers of concrete and trunslucent glass, which filters sunlight into the interior during the day. the irregularly shaped peres peace house stands on a monolithic base. the concrete basement of the structure becomes a large plaza, an empty space dissected lengthwise by two symmetrical ramps which lead inside. the dark low-ceiling area, leads inside to a well of sunlight – which opens up through theentire height of the building – where the library is located. here, alternating light and dark layers are visible, constructed from a mix of concrete, local earth and other materials. the rest of this floor is meant to be used for the various activities of the peace peres house. the remaining three floors cover an area of 600 sqm and a heigh of 3.4m, and are accessible with stairs and lifts.they house an auditorium intended for 200 persons, offices of the peres peace house and spaces for meetings.

the exterior of the peres peace house

layers of concrete and translucent glass have been used to construct the building

large windows provide views of the mediterranean sea

the well of sunlight which looks up past all floors of the building to the sky

the well of light