Italian architect to revamp Athens coast
(ANSA) - Rome May 4 - World-renowned Italian architect Renzo Piano has been commissioned to revive the Athens waterfront and create a new cultural hub in the Greek capital. The 3-million-euro project includes a cultural centre, national library, state-of-the-art opera house and park, and will be financed entirely by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, created by the late shipping magnate.
The urban renovation project will stretch from the Athenian seafront at Faliro to the Kifissos estuary and cover around 200,000 square metres. "The renovation of this stretch of coast is aimed at reconnecting the city with its waterfront and giving breathing space to a very dense urban landscape," Piano said. "This project is not about filling space but about empty space, and is less about architecture and more about nature playing the main role, which is to allow the areas of Kallithea and Moschato to breathe". Plans for the urban renovation project have been presented to Greek premier, George Papandreou. The ambitious project is expected to complement the city's cultural route known as Syngrou Avenue where the National Contemporary Art Museum, the Academy of Arts and Letters and the Opera are located. It is an economic boost for the Greek capital as the country struggles with debt repayments and continuing economic upheaval after a bailout by the International Monetary Fund and the European Union last year. Seventy-three-year-old Piano has expressed his enthusiasm for the project and a desire to reunite the city with the sea. "The driving force behind the whole project is the principle of rebuilding the strong link between the city and the sea that was lost during the construction of existing infrastructure carried out for the Olympics," Piano said. "This connection is rebuilt in both directions - from the city to the sea, with an extension of the existing urban fabric, and from the sea to the city, with green areas and tree-lined roads to be built along the main water channels, which lead to the large park that runs along the sea.
"The city needs to be reacquainted with this area, which is today both physically and psychologically segregated and through the three main connecting channels must rediscover its relationship with the sea". Athens, once considered the cradle of civilisation, is one of the world's oldest cities and has a number of famous monuments including the Pantheon, an ancient temple dating back to 438 BC. "The history and tradition of a city like Athens have influenced our entire culture," Piano said.
"The power of its traditions is palpable throughout the city, despite the very rapid growth that the city has undergone since the end of the war.
"In the last few years, the city has begun to re-read its own history and is moving towards a new vision of the urban landscape, in which even modern architecture can play an essential role".
Piano has been recognised for his work around the world including projects in Japan, Switzerland, Australia and most recently the Art Institute of Chicago which opened in 2009.
"The city needs to be reacquainted with this area, which is today both physically and psychologically segregated and through the three main connecting channels must rediscover its relationship with the sea". Athens, once considered the cradle of civilisation, is one of the world's oldest cities and has a number of famous monuments including the Pantheon, an ancient temple dating back to 438 BC. "The history and tradition of a city like Athens have influenced our entire culture," Piano said.
"The power of its traditions is palpable throughout the city, despite the very rapid growth that the city has undergone since the end of the war.
"In the last few years, the city has begun to re-read its own history and is moving towards a new vision of the urban landscape, in which even modern architecture can play an essential role".
Piano has been recognised for his work around the world including projects in Japan, Switzerland, Australia and most recently the Art Institute of Chicago which opened in 2009.