CONSTRUCTION
One Building, Three Venues: Molde's Plassen Cultural Center
Molde, Norway, which counts only 25,000 permanent inhabitants, plays host to 100,000 additional visitors as part of Moldejazz (one of Europe's oldest and largest jazz festivals) for one week in July each year
December 11, 2015
When Danish architecture studio 3XN was tasked with designing a new cultural centre for the town, they realized Molde needed a building flexible enough to handle both Moldejazz crowds and the year-round needs of town residents.
Their solution was the Plassen Cultural Center, a multifunctional "town square" in which the spaces in, on, and around the building could be used as three interconnected amphitheatres. To help them achieve the building's distinctive look, 3XN turned to Sapa Building System's aluminium windows, doors, and curtain walling to complement the local granite covering the rest of the facility.
Described as a colorful "box within a box," the building's partially revealed bright red interior and stark white granite exterior provide a sound barrier and a number of facilities designed to flow into one another. While the building houses a library, cafe, theatre, stages, and a gallery, the large outdoor staircase and distinctive roof both double as outdoor venues for events such as the jazz festival.
Keeping Molde's modest size in mind, architect Jan Ammundsen explains: "Plassen is a compact and chaste construction, but by giving the shape a number of breaches, we have created a diversity in its expression, which means that it is flexible and roomy without seeming very big."
Photo by 3XN
Keeping Molde's modest size in mind, architect Jan Ammundsen explains: "Plassen is a compact and chaste construction, but by giving the shape a number of breaches, we have created a diversity in its expression, which means that it is flexible and roomy without seeming very big."
Photo by 3XN
The overall design of the Plassen building uses folded and cut paper techniques to maximize usable spaces and distinguish it from a traditional city square. With three floors and nearly 5,800 square meters of space, the centre has provided Molde with a unique and compact new cultural hub since it was first opened in 2012. The aluminium components of the building's exterior play an important role in the inviting the informality 3XN wanted the building to exude.
The uniform finish and cladding of both horizontal, inclined, and vertical surfaces reinforces the impression of a unified structure, while at the same time creating calmness and clarity
As Jan Ammundsen also points out: "There must be room for celebration in this building, both inside, on top of it and around it. It must be able to withstand being invaded by happy people throughout the year, year after year."