Tallinn City Hall

Some pictures and text from various sources of the winner of the competition for the City Hall of Tallinn, Estonia, which I think looks pretty fantastic.

These images are from the Architechnophilia blog:





The Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) came to the design through the principle of rationalized organization with a focus on maximizing natural lighting by breaking up the building function into small blocks allowing courtyards to be created at various levels as well opening up the ground floor as an extension of the city.

These images from the AMNP Blog:

The cluster of volumes houses different administrative offices which interconnect to form atria and courtyard spaces that connect to more public plazas surrounding the structure.

From BIG: The design emphasizes openness, and connections with the surrounding city. Located within the tower/spire shown, the city council looks out onto the city and outdoor public spaces - while at the same time, those outside can get a glimpse at the inner workings or the city’s government. To give those inside, and out, a better/more interesting view, the ceiling of the tower is to be tiled with a reflective surface - creating a kind of ‘periscope’ effect. This gives the city council a reflection of the city overhead - maybe a constant reminder of who/what they’re working for - and possibly gives the average citizen the ability to look in on meetings as they’re taking place, as if looking over the shoulders of their representatives.

The SKIRA yearbook of architecture blog: