Incredible technical developments as well as the current paradigm of economic management, tend to impose a kind of standardization in the design and development of contemporary cinema complexes. Faced with this, the only characteristic of clear identity beyond the core programming, is the welcoming nature and resultant quality of the public spaces.

In the Sauveniere cinema, the volumes of the four auditoriums are the result of technical constraints and are used such as they are. They are grouped by two right angles in order to create a courtyard. This patio is an urban space which connects the Xavier Neujean square, the Sauveniere boulevard and the former Sauveniere swimming pool and therefore preserves the way through the block. The patio is a connection but also a place to rest, a coffee terrace as well as an open air space to listen to a concert or to watch a movie.

Above the ground, the impenetrable volumes of the auditoriums evoke two disproportionate bodies squashed into a plot of land too small for them. Opportunistically, the other functions are lodged in the interstitial open spaces that are created between the two bodies. The light crossing right through these public interiors, mineral grounds evoking that of the outside - in contrast to the felted materials of the auditoriums - or the canopy above the pavement are all elements inviting the bustle of the street to enter in the building. Between the two bodies, the visitors saunter from the reception on the ground floor to the bar or to the exhibition space on the fourth floor. They bypass, go alongside, climb or cross, thus offering a succession of stage sets between the two bodies and the city.

Once the auditoriums' doors open, darkness and silence leave intact the mystery that lies there.

Status : Competition

Client : French Community of Belgium

Place : Liège, Be

Architecture : Shin Bogdan Hagiwara, Thierry Decuypere, Jorn Aram Bihain (V+), BAS

Structure : BAS

Execution and building services : Bureau Bouwtechniek

Acoustic : Daidalos Peutz

Photography : Alain Janssens

May 2008
Categories: Architecture, cultural
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