Stunning.
Too bad Vancouver’s marvelous beauty is not often complimented with star architect treatment as other areas of the world are. I’m sure someone will get upset at that statement. But really, for a city surrounded by ocean and mountains, smoothly formed by once deep oceans and melting glaciers, this city could use less… sharp angles.
Regardless, take a moment to ponder how thoughtfully organic this structure will be, so fitting to its landscape. I wonder where the current animals will live while this sexy beast is constructed?
From the information I’ve found, lucky they are mostly small creatures like scallops, piranhas, which are found only in the Amazon basin, thornback rays ,flathead mullets ,red mullets, caviars , cichlids, trichogasters, barbuses, tiger barbs, black- spot barbs, clown loaches, red-tailed Black Sharks….
When it is built, the Batumi Aquarium will be a unique home to species from the Black Sea, Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea & Indian Ocean.
Here’s a little background on the building from the architects, Henning Larsen:
The 2,000 m2 aquarium will replace the previous aquarium of the port and will be situated on the beach side of Rustaveli Str. adjacent to Batumi 6 May Park featuring a Dolphinarium and Zoo.
Inspired by the characteristic pebbles of the Batumi beach, continually shaped by the wash of the waves through millennia, the building stands out as an iconic rock formation visible from both land and sea. The formation constitutes four self-supporting exhibition areas where each of the four stones represents a unique marine biotype.
”The building will become a landmark and an organic reference to all elements of the sea”, explains Design Director and Partner at Henning Larsen Architects, Louis Becker. “It captures the special atmosphere by the sea and thus becomes a tribute to the power of the sea!”
Henning Larsen, the firm that won the competition to design this building, posted detailed renderings on ArchDaily (a great resource & inspiration hub for architects and those interested in architecture, btw) so scroll through the above photos or check the site for more photos.
BATUMI AQUARIUM HISTORY & INFORMATION
PHOTOS SOURCE Arch Daily
About Halibut Herald
