Foster + Partners design a flexible home for the Buenos Aires City Hall
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

The new Buenos Aires City Hall, located in the Argentinian capital's Parque Patricios neighbourhood, is the latest project to be unveiled by Foster + Partners (opens in new tab) in South America. Combining a cleverly functional interior with an environmentally sensitive approach, the design aims to provide the perfect home for the Mayor's office, as well as the 1,500 employees working there, while making a positive contribution to the surrounding landscape and the wider area's ongoing redevelopment.
The project presented a special challenge: it was originally commissioned as the headquarters of Banco Ciudad, the municipal Buenos Aires bank. When the end-user - and consequently the brief - changed however, the scheme was easily adapted, thanks to the building's 'inherently flexible design'. The workspaces span four storeys, featuring staggered terraces and a visible open plan desk area that promotes communication and interaction between employees. The building's full height glazing not only makes the most of natural light, but also takes advantage of its picturesque parkside location. The latter is mirrored in the interior design through the presence of leafy landscaped courtyards and elegant sheltered walkways dotted across the layout.
The exterior is defined by the building's distinctive flowing roof canopy, supported by giant pillars. A deep overhang provides shelter for the entrance plaza and protects the glass facades from the elements. Internally, the temperature is regulated with the help of the roof's concrete soffits and a chilled beam system, maintaining a cool environment even in high summer. Louvres fitted to the western and eastern façades lending a helping hand.
The City Hall building covers an entire block within a previously industrialised area, south of the city centre. While designed as a workspace, the structure was also meant to become an active part of the area's urban fabric. Apart from the office areas, it includes a cafe and a 300-seat wood-panelled auditorium, planned to house public events that will help stimulate relationships with the local community.
The large building houses the Mayor's offices as well as desk space and facilities for 1,500 employees
The terraced office floors offer an innovative, super-flexible internal arrangement
The bright, airy and generous structure was also designed to be environmentally friendly and energy efficient
Offering landscaped courtyards and generous views out towards the park, the new building echoes its leafy surroundings
The 'flowing roof canopy', supported by pilars, defines this design
-
Tokyo Toilet project gets Marc Newson addition
The Tokyo Toilet project has a new addition, a Marc Newson-designed facility in the heart of the city’s Shibuya district
By Jens H Jensen • Published
-
Hublot and Takashi Murakami unite on a colourful new collaboration
Hublot’s Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Black Ceramic Rainbow watch rethinks the artist’s smiling flower motif
By Pei-Ru Keh • Published
-
Designer Tokujin Yoshioka on his new light-filled store for Issey Miyake in Ginza, Tokyo
Titled ‘Issey Miyake Ginza / 442’ the new store is summed up by ‘light, future and sustainability’, says designer Tokujin Yoshioka. Here, he takes Wallpaper* inside the new four-storey Ginza outpost
By Danielle Demetriou • Published
-
Foster + Partners’ Narbo Via enriches cultural landscape in south of France
Narbo Via, a new museum by Foster + Partners, opens in Narbonne, France
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
First look into The Whiteley redesign by Foster + Partners in London
Foster + Partners and Finchatton have joined forces to revamp The Whiteley in London, and now, the first images are revealed
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
Apple converts 1920s downtown LA theatre into show-stopping store
Apple Tower Theater in downtown Los Angeles brings the roaring 20s into the 2020s
By Elly Parsons • Last updated
-
Apple transforms 17th century palace into new Rome store
Apple has opened a new centrally-located store in Rome, in the preserved grand Palazzo Marignoli, markng one of its most significant (and largest) restoration projects to date
By Elly Parsons • Last updated
-
Foster + Partners folds Apple store into historic Washington library
By Elly Parsons • Last updated
-
Foster + Partners’ Norton Museum expansion rediscovers its West Palm Beach identity
By Harriet Thorpe • Last updated
-
Foster + Partners' Bloomberg HQ scoops RIBA Stirling Prize 2018
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
Step inside the residents’ club at One Hundred East Fifty Third Street
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated