OMA's fondazione prada torre restaurant opens at newly completed campus

torre opens in oma’s fondazione prada

Restaurant Torre opens at Fondazione Prada‘s OMA-designed campus in Milan. Designed by Rem Koolhaas, together with the firm’s Chris van Duijn and Federico Pompignoli, the space is defined as ‘a collage of themes and pre-existing elements combining works of art and design furniture’. 

all images courtesy of fondazione prada

photos by delfino sisto legnani and marco cappelletti

Spread over 215m2 the OMA-designed space is divided into two areas: the bar and restaurant, characterized by the large floor-to-ceiling windows and the walnut wood parquet flooring. At the center of the bar, a counter is decorated with spirits and liqueurs from all over the world meanwhile a fireplace surrounded by soviet chairs and tulip tables by Finnish American architect and designer Eero Saarinen.

Art punctuates the atmosphere of the restaurant with works by Italian master Lucio Fontana including Cappa per Caminetto (1949) and Testa di Medusa (1948-54). A polychrome ceramic pillar (1947) by the same artist marks the entrance to the restaurant hall where 84 seats are arranged on three offset levels, two of which are furnished with wooden tables and executive chairs by Saarinen.

On the third level original furnishings of the Four Seasons New York restaurant designed by Philip Johnson in 1958 live along side installation elements from Carsten Höller‘s the Double Club. Across all three, paintings by William n. Copley, Goshka Macuga, John Wesley and pop artist Jeff Koons adorn the walls. Other artworks created for the foundation by prominent artists include those of Thomas Demand, Nathalie Djurberg & Hans Berg, Elmgreen & Dragset, Joep van Lieshout and Tobias Rehberger.

Outdoors, a triangular terrace overlooks the urban landscape of Milan. Metal grids like those characterizing the exterior of the foundation are the backdrop for a restaurant of 20 bistro-style seats accompanied by a bar.

The restaurant is hosted in the newly completed torre building, marking the completion of the OMA-designedFondazione Prada site which was inaugurated in 2015. The project completely transformed the site, converting what was once a gin distillery on the southern edge of the city into a bold and diverse complex of challenging exhibition venues. The 60 meter-tall tower opened to the public during Milan Design Week 2018.