Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects Malmo Live Cultural Centre

A year on from its inauguration, the Malmö Live cultural centre at the Universitetsholmen, Malmö (Sweden), has already become a reference point for the city. It was designed by architect Kristian Ahlmark, of schmidt hammer lassen architects, with the idea of creating a "house of the city", which would express the spirit of the city of Malmö and contribute to urban life. The context greatly inspired the project, especially as regards the choice of materials and colours as well as the various sizes of the building’s areas.
The complex appears as one architectonic sculpture, with homogeneous façades, yet composed of buildings that feature different sizes and heights to match those of the buildings of the surrounding area, and a layout that follows the course of the canal.
The main entrance is at the northern part of the building; from the south, it can be entered directly from the promenade running along the canal.
The internal layout is organised as separate elements, following the idea of a "city within the city". The lobby is the pathway that connects the entire ground floor, and is designed to create reception areas where visitors can meet or stop to enjoy the view of the canal and the park. As for the park, the architects designed qualitative and differentiated spaces to combine with the surrounding buildings, such as a skating area, a green leafy path, a promenade along the southern side of the canal and two wooden decks.
The inside of the building is where its main functions are performed: it hosts a symphony hall, a conference hall and a flexible hall, organised along three volumes featuring an urban-scale, and thus supporting the idea of a city within the city, the very core of the project. 

(Agnese Bifulco)

Design: schmidt hammer lassen architects
Location: Malmö, Sweden

Images courtesy of schmidt hammer lassen architects, photo by Adam Mørk

www.shl.dk

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