Jean Nouvel, Congress Center,
Lucerne, Switzerland

Filter vs. Exposure
Nouvel has created a visual play using metal grills of different transparencies in different places on the facade. The impact is both internal, the grills filter light and view, as external, exposing the passer-by to the images of the people in movement and the inside world of culture.

Fragmentation vs. Unity
The three main structures are aligned perpendicularly beneath a huge horizontal plane. The roof shelters like a vast pagoda the three different volumes of the building. It was planned to harmonize the building with the horizontal expanse of the lake and it invites one to spend the intervals outside. The facility contains a 1840-seat concert hall, a 900-seat multifunctional hall and a museum with a 300-seat conference hall.
The city's ambitions as a tourist and conference center were the occasion for the Lucerne music festival, an international and renowned event, to get a new house.