Renderings: Sou Fujimoto

Sou Fujimoto’s latest creation looks like a tropical storm swirling off the coast of Belgrade, Serbia. Rest easy, it is just the brand new Beton Hala Waterfront Center, jam packed with every commercial and public amenity anyone could dream of. The gorgeous sprawling structure proposes to connect the town’s ancient fortress to the newly developed waterfront area with a series of winding ribbon-like levels that offer restaurants, cafes, exhibition spaces, and of course, panoramic views of the ocean. Read more.

Belgrade’s fortress is one of the city’s most popular destinations. However, in true ancient city walls fashion, it sits atop a cliff that is strategically isolated from the rest of the city’s attractions. The new Beton Hala center will connect the fortress to the burgeoning waterfront area with a number of platforms for people to walk down and around, inside and out, as they make their way from one site to the next.

The middle of the spiraling structure contains a public plaza with exhibition spaces for contemporary art. Retail stores line the middle layers while restaurants inhabit the outer core with the best view of the ocean. Visitors park underneath the structure making it an entirely pedestrian friendly center. Fujimoto likens the design to a “floating cloud”, a decidedly less menacing–or just manic–image than the eye-of-the-storm the birds-eye renderings depict.

[via designboom]

by Molly Cotter

posted in Uncategorized

tagged Belgrade, Beton Hala center, fortress, sou fujimoto, urban regeneration, waterfront

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