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JLCG arquitectos, Ida, Lisboa, Portugal
 
 

Perspective

Explanation of the Architect

Over the water – into the trees

The project is inscribed in the city as an urban and natural boundary.

Its presence is revealed, in a vibrant and unsettling way, by a multiplied and distorted image of its surroundings in the building reflecting surface: oak woods, city, pine woods, dunes. The building and its constituent bodies follow the shape of the large dune nearby, as if they were themselves sculptured by the sea wind and the natural elements. This linear body, long and narrow, follows the hill of sand’s contortion and the oblique direction of the strong winds - being about the same height as the dune complex.

Opinion of the Jury

The author provides the building 'as an urban and natural boundary' following 'the shape of the large dune nearby'. The proposed material for the facades strongly emphasises the concept. It will give spectacular meaning to the presence of the ICC. The functionality and organisation of the courtrooms, including the beautiful public parts, are very good and elegantly situated in the landscape. The Jury respects this clear intention but considers the main building as a barrier standing against the required values of transparency and openness. Furthermore, the Jury found the internal circulation problematic due to the extreme long distances.