Beyeler Foundation Museum, Riehen (Switzerland) - Renzo Piano Building Workshop RPBW
Louis Kahn (February 20th 1901 – March 17th 1974) was one of the United States' greatest 20th century architects, known for combining Modernism with...
Art Gallery on the roof of the Lingotto Building, Via Nizza, Torino (Turin), Italy. Architect: Renzo Piano. Lingotto is a district of Turin, Italy, but the name is most associated with the 355 160m² steel and concrete Lingotto building, which once was the Fiat factory. Built from 1916 and opened in 1923, the design (by architect Mattè Trucco) was unusual in that it had five floors, with raw materials going in at the ground floor, and cars built on a line that went up through the building. Finished cars emerged at rooftop level, where there was a rooftop test track, 2.4km long x 24.4m wide at 21.3m above ground. The original Lingotto rooftop test track can be seen briefly during the getaway sequence in the film The Italian Job (1969). Lingotto was the largest car factory in the world at that time. For its time, the Lingotto building was avante-garde, influential and impressive — Le Corbusier called it "one of the most impressive sights in industry", and "a guideline for town planning". 80 different models of car were produced there in its lifetime, including the famous Fiat Topolino of 1936. The factory became outmoded in the 1970's and the decision was made to finally close it in 1982. The closure of the plant led to much public debate about its future, and how to recover from industrial decline in general. An architectural competition was held, which was eventually awarded to Renzo Piano, who envisioned an exciting public space for the city. The old factory has been restored, refurbished and converted into a multi-purpose facility with trade exhibition and concert halls, a conference centre, a hotel, a shopping arcade, a convention centre, and on the roof an art gallery exhibiting the collection of the Agnelli family, the owners of Fiat.The work was completed in 1989. Sources: Arup.com and Wikipedia.
