Architecture

Zaha Hadid's first posthumous project inaugurated

Zaha Hadid's first posthumous project inaugurated
The Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous works due for completion this year
The Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous works due for completion this year
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Some 16 years in the making, the Salerno Maritime Terminal was inaugurated by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi
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Some 16 years in the making, the Salerno Maritime Terminal was inaugurated by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi
ZHA won a competition to design the terminal all the way back in 2000
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ZHA won a competition to design the terminal all the way back in 2000
The building makes up part of an ongoing redevelopment program in the area
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The building makes up part of an ongoing redevelopment program in the area
The terminal reaches a maximum height of 13.5 m (44 ft)
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The terminal reaches a maximum height of 13.5 m (44 ft)
The Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous works due for completion this year
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The Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous works due for completion this year
The Salerno Maritime Terminal takes its place very well in the area
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The Salerno Maritime Terminal takes its place very well in the area
Aptly likened to an oyster by ZHA, the building is very much a Hadid-designed work and the trademark curves are there
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Aptly likened to an oyster by ZHA, the building is very much a Hadid-designed work and the trademark curves are there
The Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous works due for completion this year
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The Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous works due for completion this year
Inside the imposing building
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Inside the imposing building
Inside the imposing building
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Inside the imposing building
Inside the imposing building
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Inside the imposing building
Inside the imposing building
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Inside the imposing building
Some 16 years in the making, the Salerno Maritime Terminal was inaugurated by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi
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Some 16 years in the making, the Salerno Maritime Terminal was inaugurated by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi
ZHA won a competition to design the terminal all the way back in 2000
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ZHA won a competition to design the terminal all the way back in 2000
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It's always poignant when an artist's work is released posthumously, and the official completion of Zaha Hadid Architects' first project since its founder's recent death is no exception. Some 16 years in the making, the oyster-like Salerno Maritime Terminal was inaugurated today by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

Hadid won an architectural competition to design the terminal all the way back in 2000, and it is part of an ongoing redevelopment program in the area. The building comprises three major sections: administration offices, an international terminal for ferries and cruise ships, and another terminal for local and regional ferries.

Constructed primarily from concrete with an impressive 20-m (65-ft) cantilever, the three-story building is topped by an asymmetric shell likened to an oyster by ZHA. The project definitely follows Hadid's usual design language and the trademark – or rather obligatory – curves are there. Still, it's a little harder around the edges than later designs, with more muscle and less grace.

Inside the imposing building
Inside the imposing building

Judging from the moody photos (expertly captured in film) by famed architectural photographer Hélène Binet, the building takes its place well on the waterfront. The quayside rises as passengers approach from the city, with each interior space flowing into the next.

The overall impression of the interior is large, imposing and impressive, invoking confidence that it will stand the test of time. Indeed, the project could perhaps have proven a worthy, if not sublime, bookend to to Hadid's career, but it's not to be.

Instead, Salerno Maritime Terminal is the first of four posthumous due for completion by Zaha Hadid Architects this year. The firm, now headed by longtime Hadid collaborator Patrik Schumacher, recently confirmed that it will continue to practice, for the time being at least, honoring all outstanding projects.

Source: ZHA

View gallery - 14 images
2 comments
2 comments
Gizmowiz
Outwardly it looks like he designed the house using a house built in Genesee, CO built in 1963 (over 50 years ago):
http://www.house-crazy.com/colorados-famous-spaceship-house/
Michael Flower
Wasn't that the Spaceship used in the 1956 Movie "Forbidden Planet"?