renzo piano clads valletta city gate with vast stone façade

renzo piano clads valletta city gate in malta with vast stone façade
all images © renzo piano building workshop

in 2008 renzo piano began work on the ‘valletta city gate’, a project designed to transform access to the maltese capital’s historic city center. the masterplan ensures the preservation of the site’s architectural heritage, while simultaneously creating cultural and civic venues designed to enrich the city’s public realm. the vast scheme includes the renovation of the city gate, the conversion of a portion of the historic dry moats that flank the town, the design of a new parliament building, and the restoration of the previously existing opera house. adjoining public spaces are also being reconfigured in order to improve pedestrian circulation and wayfinding.

the complex façade acts as a brise-soleil that modulates and assists internal air conditioning

to establish a meaningful dialogue between the past and present, piano worked alongside CFF filiberti to choose a suitably inventive local stone for the plan’s walls and historic structures. the material not only provides a sympathetic external finish, but also helps regulate the amount of energy the building uses and controls the quantity of daylight permitted to enter. the complex façade of the parliament hall has been designed in accordance with the angle of the sun’s rays, acting as a brise-soleil that modulates and assists internal air conditioning.

the masterplan ensures the preservation of the site’s architectural heritage

the ‘valletta city gate’ is presented as part of an exhibition at marmomacc, an international trade fair for stone and design technology that takes place in verona, italy from september 24-27, 2014.

see designboom‘s previous coverage of the ongoing project here.

construction at the maltese site is ongoing

the choice of stone is intended to establish the building as a rock eroded by the wind

sectional drawing indicating the different aspects of piano’s masterplan