Location

Style of architecture
Site plan analysis
Environment and microclimate
Requirements and user behaviour
Circulation
Design form
Access approach
Spatial Planning
Circulation
Relation of Built to un built spaces to the surrounding content (Inter relation
of space)
Versatility of space
Different quality of spaces giving varied visitor experiences
Visitor experience achieved in the design through planning
Specific materials or construction technology
Facade .

Architect
Renzo piano

Location
● New Caledonia
● 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) northeast of the historic centre of Nouméa, the
capital of New Caledonia,

accessibility
● The nearest airport to Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre is Magenta
(GEA). = 2.7 km
● bus from Noumea (NOU) to Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre = 3.9
km
Style of architecture
● celebrates the vernacular Kanak culture, the indigenous culture of
New Caledonia,
● had a vision of establishing a cultural centre which blended the
linguistic and artistic heritage of t

he Kanak people
● The heart of the Tjibaou Cultural Centre is a 7,000 m² building
consisting mostly of ten ribbed and slender structures inspired by the
form of traditional Kanak huts.
●

Traditions of kanak
● The Kanak (French spelling until 1984: Canaque) are the indigenous
Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia,
● The Kanaks were known to worship their ancestors. This worship was
embodied in the sepulchre, sacred stones, and devotional hearths
where they offered sacrifices
● Stone carvings made of jade or serpentinite are in the form of
ceremonial axe representing clan's strength and power.
 ●

Design form
● attempting to strike a balance between technology and creativity
without following any single approach to form or theory.
● They ended up focusing heavily on the landscape and using the
traditional huts of the native Kanak civilization,
● The end design was a symbolic arrangement of 10 units called
“cases,” or hut pavilions
● The end design was a symbolic arrangement of 10 units called
“cases,” or hut pavilions.
 ● These cases were vertical tubes arranged around a central
rectangular axis in three groups or village clusters with one tall hut (at
92 feet high).
● In contrast, the interior spaces took on a more contemporary
approach with modern facilities and other accommodations.
● concept that was at the forefront of the design was natural ventilation

NATURAL VENTILATIOM

MATERIALS
 ● majority of materials would be prefabricated ( in France) then brought
over to the site. Piano selected glass, steel, corrugated aluminum,
bamboo, and African Iroko wood as his primary materials
● Iroko had a particular significance (selected for the exterior) because
of its durability, connection to the natural landscape, and its ability to
evoke the appearance of the traditional huts

STRUCTURE
● The walls of the cases where comprised of two concentric rings
creating a double skin or a hybrid system.
● The interior ring/wall was composed of vertical columns of laminate
iroko wood while the exterior ring/wall used curved laminated wooden
members.
● Horizontal and diagonal steel bracing and connections were used to
connect the two rings and make them rigid.
● This screening element is used to control the amount of heat, solar
gain, and ventilation in the cases.

PASSIVE COOLING
● To maximize cooling, the cultural center takes advantage of a passive
cooling system enabled by its unique conical shape and a system of
operable roof skylights, screen of laminated wood, louvres, and fixed
windows.
● The building primarily uses two effects to push hot air out of the top:
The Venturi effect and the Stack effect.
● When there is a light to moderate wind (which is the majority if the
time) the building uses the Stack effect.
● Simply by opening the series of horizontal louvres at the base of the
interior façade, cool, moist air is allowed to blow in off of a nearby
lagoon into the interior spaces.
● These louvres automatically open and close in tandem and are
controlled by an integrated computer system which constantly
calibrates the speed of the wind.
 ● For other wind conditions the unique shape of the structure in
addition to the louvres system below the roof, which is fixed open,
permits air pressure to balance between the interior and exterior

Different quality of spaces giving varied visitor experiences

● Facilities for permanent and temporary exhibitions, interior and

exterior performance space, multimedia library, and a thematic
landscape
● There are ten huts, of three different sizes, from 20 to 28m in
height, all interconnected by a footpath. Within the Cultural
Center, these huts serve various functions. The first group
comprises exhibition spaces, the second series of huts houses
research areas, a conference room and a library. The last
series of huts contains studios for music, dance, painting, and
sculpture
● finally, the tenth pavilion contains a cafe. The center also
includes a 400-seat auditorium, an open-air theater for 4500,
a pavilion for temporary exhibitions, artist workshops,
storage areas, administration offices, a shop, and various
visitor facilities.
 ●

Inference
1) Passive ventilation which utilizes natural wind conditions to cool the
internal environment.

2) The architecture exemplifies the remarkable synthesis of cultural and

environmental conditions that celebrates Renzo Piano's vision and the
genius loci of New Caledonia. The formal resolution of the architecture
uses modem building technology to create a continuation of the Kanak
culture, while at the same time addressing the biophysical and
psycho-cultural needs of its users.