WINNER ANNOUNCED FOR THE EUROPEAN UNION PRIZE FOR CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE – MIES VAN DER ROHE AWARD 2009
Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, Oslo by Snøhetta
The European Commission and the Fundació Mies van der Rohe announced on the 29th of April that the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, Oslo, Norway by Snøhetta is the winner of the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award 2009.

This landmark building by Snøhetta, who also designed the new Library of Alexandria (2002), is the largest cultural centre built in Norway in 700 years. It sloping stone roof - made up of 36,000 fitted pieces – rises up from the fjord; allowing members of the public, residents and opera goers alike, to walk over the building, developing a relationship with the public structure. Integral to the 1,000-room interior, which is largely lined with crafted woodwork (using the traditions of Norwegian boat builders), are a number of art commissions interwoven into the structural fabric, including a cloakroom, a collaboration with their 2007 Serpentine Pavilion collaborator Olafur Eliasson. There will be a press visit to the winning building on 7 May 2009 and a special granting ceremony at the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion in Barcelona on 28 May 2009.

A travelling exhibition and catalogue featuring the works chosen by the Jury  will be presented in September this year.
The European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth, Ján Figel’ said : “Architecture is a highly visible showcase of creativity and innovation, and today’s prize winners show the benefits of investing in European architectural talent, in our creativity and innovation. This is all the more relevant this year, as stimulating new ideas and highlighting entrepreneurial efforts are key parts of the European Year of Creativity and Innovation 2009”.

The Jury, chaired by Francis Rambert includes: Ole Bouman, Irena Fialová, Fulvio Irace, Luis M. Mansilla, Carme Pinós and Vasa J. PeroviΔ‡. Francis Rambert, Chair of the Jury said:

“The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet in Oslo is more than just a building. It is first an urban space, a gift to the city. The building can be considered a catalyst of all the energies of the city and is emblematic of the regeneration of its urban tissue.”

Tarald Lundevall, project architect for Snøhetta said: “Snøhetta considers the Mies van der Rohe Award among the worlds most prestigious architectural acknowledgements. We are greatly honoured to receive this prize for the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet.”

The EU Culture Programme also funds the European Border Breakers Awards, the European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Awards, which will be presented in Taormina (Sicily, Italy) on 5 June 2009, and the forthcoming European Union Prize for Literature to be awarded in September 2009.

THE WINNER:
Norwegian National Opera & Ballet
Oslo, Norway
SNØHETTA/ Kjetil Trædal Thorsen, Tarald Lundevall, Craig Dykers
The new building for the opera and ballet is the first element in the transformation of the bay area of Oslo with the objective of reconnecting the city with its waterfront. In addition to providing the city with an opera and ballet house of the highest international standards, the marble-clad roofscape is both a new civic landmark as well as an architectural landscape that is open to the public. The interior is composed of a sequence of differentiated spaces characterised by carefully chosen materials and the integration of the works of several artists.
Kjetil Trædal Thorsen (born 1958 in Haugesund, Norway, diploma: Technische Universität Graz) , Tarald Lundevall (born 1948 in Oslo, diploma: Arkitektur og designhøgskolen i Oslo) and Craig Dykers (born 1961 in Frankfurt, diploma: University of Texas at Austin) are partners and directors of Snøhetta, an architectural practice established in 1989 in Oslo. Their major works include the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt; the Norwegian Embassy in Berlin and the INMED Institute of Neurobiology in Marseilles, France.
www.snohetta.com

OPERAHOUSE credits
Architect: Snøhetta AS
Landscape Architect: Snøhetta AS
Interior Architect: Snøhetta AS

Architectural competition phase:
Project Architects: Craig Dykers, Tarald Lundevall, Kjetil Trædal Thorsen
Architects: Martin Dietrichson, Ibrahim El Hayawan, Chandani Ratnawira, Harriet Rikheim, Marianne Sætre
Landscape architects: Snøhetta AS, Ragnhild Momrak
Advisors: Inger Buresund, Axel Hellstenius, Henrik Hellstenius, Peder Istad, Jorunn Sannes
Theatre Consultants: Theatre Projects Consultants Ltd.

Planning and building phase:
Project manager: Tarald Lundevall
Assistant management: Sigrun Aunan, Craig Dykers, Simon Ewings
Designleader: Kjetil Trædal Thorsen
Groupleaders: Rune Grasdal, Tom Holtmann, Elaine Molinar, Kari Stensrød, Øystein Tveter
Team architects: Anne-Cecilie Haug, Ibrahim El Hayawan, Tine Hegli, Jette Hopp, Zenul Khan, Frank Kristiansen, Cecilia Landmark, Camilla Moneta, Aase Kari Mortensen, Frank Nodland, Andreas Nygaard, Michael Pedersen, Harriet Rikheim, Margit Tidemann Ruud, Marianne Sætre, Knut Tronstad, Tae Young Yoon.
Team landscape architects: Ragnhild Momrak, Andreas Nypan
Team interior architects: Bjørg Aabø, Christina Sletner

If you are interested to read more about the OPERAHOUSE

download the PDF with all the project's details HERE

THE FINALISTS:
The winner of the Prize was selected from a shortlist of five finalists:
• Zenith Music Hall, Strasbourg (France) by Studio Fuksas/ Massimiliano & Doriana Fuksas
• Luigi Bocconi University, Milan (Italy) by Grafton Architects/ Shelley McNamara, Yvonne Farrell
• Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, Oslo (Norway) by Snøhetta/ Kjetil Trædal Thorsen, Tarald Lundevall, Craig Dykers
• Multimodal Centre – Nice Tramway, Nice (France) by Atelier Marc Barani
• Libr ary, Senior Citizens’ Centre and Interior Courtyard, Barcelona (Spain) by RCR Arquitectes

The finalists were selected from 340 projects proposed by the Architects’ Council of Europe (ACE) member associations, other national architectural associations, the group of Experts and the Advisory Committee.