No proof was needed that Zaha Hadid's architectural legacy would live on to continue to inspire and amaze, and the office's latest completion – the new Salerno Maritime Terminal – is a case in point. The building, the first to be completed by the firm since the architect's untimely passing last month, has just been inaugurated in the Campania region of southern Italy.
The project was kick-started by then-mayor Vincenzo De Luca to aid the area's social, economic and environmental regeneration. The terminal was completed this month under the watchful eye of current mayor Vincenzo Napoli.
The building's hard, asymmetric concrete shell was designed to protect users from the region's hot sun during the popular summer vacation months. Its curvaceous form – a Hadid trademark – even takes its references from the sea, abstractly resembling an oyster.
The program inside is straightforward, containing administration offices for national border controls and shipping lines; a terminal for international ferries and cruise ships; and a separate terminal for local and regional ferries. Internal ramps criss-cross the building, enhancing connections between areas.
Its functionality and valuable contribution to the area's infrastructure – the terminal is set to increase arrivals of ferry and cruise ships by 500,000 additional passengers each year, creating new jobs – are matched by its views, which are nothing less than spectacular, spanning not just the blue Mediterranean Sea, but also the picturesque Amalfi Coast, the Gulf of Salerno and the Cilento.
The terminal's striking form is illuminated at night, acting as a beacon or lighthouse for the coastal town. 'The new terminal operates, both functionally and visually, as a smooth transition between land and sea,' explain the architects, 'a coastal land formation that mediates between solid and liquid.'
The project is meant to be a key piece in the area's social, economic and environmental regeneration
The Terminal will help increase the arrivals of ferries and cruise ships, which in turn will help create plenty of new jobs in the area
The project commenced way back in 1993; in 2000 Zaha Hadid Architects won the international competition to design it
Inside, the building houses offices as well as terminals for international and local ferries and cruise ships
Smooth, undulating ramps link different areas within the terminal
At night, the terminal is lit from within, acting as a lighthouse for the port
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Zaha Hadid Architects website
Photography: Helen Binet
-
Lana Trzebinski’s ceramics for de Pury sale are mediations on healingLana Trzebinski on creating her ‘Fractal Series’ of ceramic art in her Nairobi studio, for a selling exhibition with de Pury
-
Wallpaper* January 2024 reveals rising stars of the year
Discover the next-generation creatives shaping design, architecture, fashion, photography and more in Wallpaper* January 2024, on sale now
-
The Peninsula London Spa and Wellness Centre opens as an oasis of tranquillity and wellbeing
The Peninsula Spa and Wellness Centre offers an array of ancient and modern therapies for optimising the mind and body
-
Floating infinity pool by Herzog & De Meuron at Lake Como is largest of its kind
Herzog & de Meuron creates the largest floating infinity pool in the world for Mandarin Oriental in Lake Como
-
The finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond
For some of the world's finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond, scroll below. Can’t get enough of brutalism? Neither can we.
-
Best of brutalist Italian architecture chronicled in new book
Brutalist Italian architecture enthusiasts and concrete completists will be spoilt for choice by Roberto Conte and Stefano Perego’s pictorial tour
-
Studio Tropicana, Switzerland and Italy: Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023
Based in Switzerland and Italy, Studio Tropicana is part of the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023, our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios
-
WeWork Meravigli blends past and present in a 21st-century office space
WeWork Meravigli launches in Milan, bringing its ornate, historical new home to the 21st century
-
The Wonder Cabinet fosters creativity in Bethlehem
The Wonder Cabinet in Bethlehem, Palestine is a not-for-profit production and cultural hub for creativity in the region
-
In memoriam: Paolo Portoghesi (1931 - 2023)
Postmodernist Italian architect Paolo Portoghesi has died; writer David Plaisant celebrates his life and legacy, recalling his visit to Calcata for a feature in the Wallpaper* April 2021 issue
-
V&A's Tropical Modernism: a vivid look at architecture culture in newly independent Ghana
Subtitled ‘Architecture and Power in West Africa’, V&A's 'Tropical Modernism' is a richly historical show at the 2023 Venice Biennale, perfectly aligned with the overarching theme of inclusion and exploration of modernism’s overlooked cultural impact
