Fondaco dei Tedeschi / OMA
This just in from OMA! The firm has unveiled their plans for the major restoration project of the Fondaco dei Tedeschi – a landmark building in Venice, Italy. Rich in history, this icon was constructed by in 1228 as a major trading post for German merchants, and under Napoleon it became a customs house in 1806. Its most recent use has been as a post office, yet currently, the building has fallen into a state of disrepair as most of the building is unused and inaccessible for the first time in centuries. Now, the next step in the building’s evolution is to become, yet again, a thriving trading post – yet, in a contemporary way. OMA has been commissioned to the create a culturally-programmed department store that will, once again, give a new spirit to the building.
More images and more about the project after the break.
For the Fondaco dei Tedeschi, change is common. The building has been rebuilt twice ( Its current configuration dates from 1506), and as the building has accommodated new uses, different elements have either been removed completely or modified.
Model, il Fondaco dei Tedeschi, Venice, Italy, 2010 © OMA
OMA has designed a range of architectural modifications and developed a cultural program to reactivate the building as a vital public space, from top to bottom. A terrace with rare views of the Grand Canal will be created by removing two sides of the existing roof, leaving the building’s profile intact while unlocking exciting potential for the Fondaco dei Tedeschi as a major destination and vantage point for tourists and Venetians alike. The rooftop, together with the courtyard below, will become a public venue for events including exhibitions and film screenings. A year-round cultural program will be aimed at locals and tourists – the 20 million who visit the city each year, as well as the 900,000 who come specifically for the Biennales and festivals.
Proposal, courtyard as cinema, il Fondaco dei Tedeschi, Venice, Italy. © OMA
New entrances to the Fondaco will be created from the Campo San Bartolomeo and the Rialto to encourage circulation, escalators will be added to create a new public route through the building, rooms will be consolidated in a way that respects the Fondaco’s structure, while crucial historic elements like the corner rooms will remain untouched. Historic aspects of the building, lost for centuries, will be resurrected: the walls of the gallerias will once again become a surface for frescoes, reappearing in a contemporary form.
With OMA’s restoration project, the Fondaco dei Tedeschi will again be reestablished as a major component in Venice, bridging the present with the past and linking commerce and culture.
Lets hope that OMA’ drive to self promotion doesnt destroy this project. Such projects require humility towards history and not narcissim… i am not sure it was a good choice to select OMA for this…
i agree with you, lately seems that OMA is equal to “radical look style”
i dont know why its armonic analisys needs always an alternative look like saying “OMA is/was here” instead of doing something less loudy
as you said , Humility
It will be fun to see OMA dealing with italian bureaucracy, intricate normative system and inefficiency. I’m rather curious to see, for example, if their radical, and a bit simplistic idea for the roof will survive the passage through the superintendence to monuments… I’m feeling a sort of subtle pleasure thinking that the shiny OMA superstars are going to experiment the taste of the medicine we italian architects are submitted to every day…
culturally-programmed department store … ha ha ha
This is not strictly related to architecture, but to this building. I was in Venice recently, and learned that the Fondaco had burned down (presumably before the most recent reconstruction), destroying merchandise with a value approximate to the entire product of the city of Antwerp.
Many top firms have been recently working for long time for this beautiful site. It is a shame that the municipality and insitution are not going trough… Maybe another useless proposal…
If it will be successful, it will open the door for modernism in Venice. It is really necessary in Venice…
well I must disagree with that. Let’s keep venice as it is.
junior,
How do you feel about Carlos Scarpa’s work in Venice? Perhaps you might want to check out the Querini Stampalia Foundation and the Olivetti Showroom. looking forward to your response
department store!? Seriously?
7:43 PM Aug 27th
RT @archdaily: Fondaco dei Tedeschi / OMA http://archdai.ly/9nuEoK #architecture
9:58 PM Aug 27th
Fondaco dei Tedeschi / OMA: Site, il Fondaco dei Tedeschi, adjacent to Rialto Bridge, Venice, Italy. © OMAThis jus… http://bit.ly/cY04vJ
10:02 PM Aug 27th
Fondaco dei Tedeschi / OMA | ArchDaily http://bit.ly/9hwL1A
4:47 AM Aug 28th
Fondaco dei Tedeschi / OMA http://tinyurl.com/2wzrna6
9:21 AM Aug 30th
OMA unveils their plans for the major restoration project of the Fondaco dei Tedeschi – a landmark building in Venice http://bit.ly/9n1Rso
10:09 AM Aug 30th
RT @arconserve OMA unveils their plans for the major restoration of the Fondaco dei Tedeschi–a landmark bldg in Venice http://bit.ly/9n1Rso
10:12 AM Aug 30th
RT @urbanmatt: RT @arconserve OMA unveils their plans for the major restoration of the Fondaco dei Tedeschi–a landmark bldg in Venice http://bit.ly/9n1Rso