Project of the site of Fontvieille | Studio Fuksas

Restructuring and extension of the new Fontvieille site, Principality of Monaco, grouping cultural spaces, commercial spaces, public and landscaped spaces.

"A landscape sensitive to an extraordinary geography,
To emphasize how much the existing is incredible.
A hill that connects the sea to the city.
A vertical park and a transparent sea.
See the garden of delights while thinking of the poetry of the Song of Songs”
Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas

Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas won the competition for the project of extension and restructuring of the new site of Fontvieille, intended to reinvigorate the district and the port of Fontvieille in Monaco. The project provides answers to major cultural, commercial, urban, architectural and ecological issues. The project directs the building to the outside, towards the horizon, creating new links with the environment and the natural landscape all around, from the island of Ranieri III to the sea, crossing the Canton Square, the Animal Garden, the cablecar station and avenue Albert II. The natural elements guided the inspiration: here, the sea, there, the  slopes green Mediterranean hills. The curved lines evoke the movement of the waves and the topography of the seabed. They also express the geometry of the building, conceived as a extension of the Rock from the mountain to the sea, with levels that are superimposed on terraces, offering outdoor spaces adorned with local plant elements.

The border between inside and outside tends to disappear and the large hanging garden, at different levels, gives a new architectural identity instead. On each floor, a large opening connects the space commercial terraces that allow you to survey the entire building, from the highest point to the sea. Indeed, the pedestrian flows completely cross the project and become real scenic walks with privileged points of view on the horizon: the Rock, the Exotic Garden and the cliff of the Head of the Dog. The building is spread over five levels, which are distinguished by color, each linked to a landscape element. The ground floor is red, the shadow of the tiles of the historic center of Monaco; the first floor is blue, like the sea; the second floor is lavender, like the flower that grows in the south of France; the third floor is ocher, like the shades of the surrounding facades. Finally, in the hanging garden, the gray evokes the cliffs of the Côte d'Azur. Each of these colors is used for floors, furniture and ceilings. 

The colored drops that define the floors with their organic forms are sandstone or marble. These drops of color are reproduced on the ceiling, lit by colored LEDs. Furniture, also designed according to the organic lines, are fiberglass. 

The new Fontvieille site offers a contemporary, fluid and organic architecture. Activities commercial spaces are deployed along a covered space, communicating directly to the outside. Every level, the central space opens onto a terrace facing the sea, creating a dialogue with the natural elements of the landscape, such as views of Fort Fontvieille Rock or natural light to the mall.

The ecological aspect is one of the essential elements of the project, whose impact in the site allows to develop a "Green corridor" between the Rock and the Exotic Garden. The greening of the building introduces nature into the urban space, creating a new landscape up to the sea.