PAR & SES KEELUNG RD 2 - Thomas Sériès et Sériès

The project is located at the very end of Keelung's harbor master plan, where the mountain meets the sea. The design frames the harbor and the water beyond with an asymmetrical tower defining the northern perimeter providing a dramatic landmark for Taiwan from both the sea and the city.

To become a landmark, this project adopts a form that resists easy classification to free-associate with successive symbols of the utilitarian, the industrial, and the poetic. It combines maximum artistry with maximum efficiency. The Harbor Tower's portal becomes a framing devise for the city while providing passage for the plaza. Given its location and placement, the figure of the tower takes a geometrical stand in relation to the mountains and transit network. Oriented to true north the tower acts as a hinge between harbor and city. Tilting five degrees eastward, the buildings broadest facades dematerialize into reflections of water or sky. The interiors of the terminal and the roof mezzanine are designed as hybrid spaces, not only blurring the boundaries between exterior and interior, but also allowing for easy adaptation to variable program.

The new harbor project is also one piece in a larger green network that links public open space with waterfront amenities . The design of the Keelung Harbor Terminal provides a continuous open space at the water's edge where terminal halls emerge like prisms through the green roof generating a condition that is both building and landscape.

In this way, new urban developments and public spaces can grow without displacing natural recreational land and will create an exciting destination within easy reach of Keelung's city residents.