Palacio de Congresos Lanzarote, Spain Concert Hall Building Design Image, Canaries Project News

Palacio de Congresos, Lanzarote

Concert & Congress Hall in Canary Islands, Spain design by Henning Larsen Architects

5 Mar 2009

Design: Henning Larsen Architects / Carlos Morales Architect

The building will demonstrate a unique flexibility. The halls are suitable for different uses: classical concerts, electronic music and conferences.

The size of all three halls can be easily modified. The large hall seats up to 900 people, the middle hall seats 800 and the smallest hall seats 350 people.

New concert hall on Lanzarote

Inspired by volcanoes

The renowned Danish architectural company Henning Larsen Architects and Spanish architect Carlos Morales have won the international architectural competition to design the new concert and congress hall on one of the Canary Islands, Lanzarote. The team also included engineering consultancy, Buro Happold.

Henning Larsen Architects has designed several internationally noted concert halls. Among others, the opera in Copenhagen, Uppsala Concert & Congress Hall in Sweden and Iceland’s new national concert hall currently being built on the harbour in Reykjavik.

The new 15.000 m2 concert and congress hall of Lanzarote, Palacio de Congresos, will be located at the sea promenade of Arrecife, the island’s main city. The building is inspired by the jagged and characteristic landscape of Lanzarote. The crystalline shape accentuates the identity and evolves the profile of the city. In the evening it welcomes visitors and shows the inner glow and activity.

”The building will become a cultural point of reference for Lanzarote”, explains Design Director Louis Becker, Henning Larsen Architects. “It holds the sense and feel of the island. You experience the vast nature with its mountains, volcanoes, ocean and the high sky. The building is created for this place and this place alone”.

Lanzarote’s new concert and congress hall is designed to be as flexible as possible. It allows for different scenarios to take place and the halls are suitable for different uses: classical concerts, electronic music and conferences. Additionally, the size of the three halls can be modified.

”The building itself is an answer to the functional program with a strong sense of belonging to the place for which it is designed”, says Managing Director Carlos Morales, Carlos Morales Arquitecto SLP. Projecting is expected to commence in 2009 and the Palacio de Congresos to be ready for inauguration in 2013.

Lanzarote concert and congress hall – Building Information

Palacio de Congresos, Arrecife, Lanzarote, Spain
Area: 15.000 m2
Client: Gobierno de Canarias

Team at Henning Larsen Architects: Louis Becker, Ingela Larsson, Charlotte Søderhamn Nielsen, Rasmus Pedersen, Christian Schjøll and Sofie Hedin.

Team at Carlos Morales Arquitecto SLP: Carlos Morales, Enrique Roig,
Manolo Martos and Cayetano Cameselle.

Colaborating team: Henning Larsen Architects, Carlos Morales Arquitecto SLP and Buro Happold.

Competition: 1st prize in international competition
Competition facts: Of the 52 architects who applied for participation in
the Palacio de Congresos Arrecife competition only 10 were selected.

Final result:
1. Henning Larsen Architects and Carlos Morales Arquitecto SLP
2. Arquitectonia Proyectos de Europa SL
3. Nieto Soberano Arquitectos
4. Menis Arquitecto SL

Other participants:

Miguel Verdu Belmonte
Office Architecture in Barcelona, SL
Mangado Y Asociados SL
Paredes Pedrosa Arquitectos
Frechilla & Lopez Pelaez Arquitecto FLP, SL
Dominique Perrault Arquitecto

About Lanzarote
The island has 139.000 (2008) inhabitants and is a one of The Canaries, part of Spain. The main city is Arrecife. The island is volcanic. It is a popular destination with tourists. In 2008 nearly 2,7 mill. tourists visited Lanzarote. The number is expected to double within 10 years.

Carlos Morales
Carlos Morales Architect SL is a young dynamic architectural company from Lanzarote whose founder also began a partnership in Barcelona (omr arquitectura). Together they fulfilled a wide range of projects on the mainland of Spain. In 2001 they won the international competition to design the Arrecife waterfront.

Later on Carlos Morales SL was founded and continued the same line of development and design. The objective of the company is to be able to satisfy the needs of the client without forgetting the environment in such a way that the final project becomes a coherent answer for both the demands of the site and the functionality of the building.

Carlos Morales Arquitecto SLP, Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain
Tel: +34 928 51 58 34

Henning Larsen Architects
Henning Larsen Architects is an international architecture company with strong Scandinavian roots. It was founded in 1959 and today employs 130 people. In 2008, the company worked with projects in 16 different countries.

Henning Larsen Architects originates in an architectural tradition with function and location working as generators of constant development of design. The architectural aim of Henning Larsen Architects is to design the physical surroundings in a way that ensures the user a perceptual design and a solid functionality. The idea of the project grows from a search of uniqueness.

Henning Larsen Architects prioritises sustainability in line with the other qualities of a building. The design of contemporary buildings must include a clear energy conception. International projects comprise buildings in Norway, Germany, Sweden, Iceland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, the Middle East and Africa.

Henning Larsen Architects has designed a number of renowned concert halls. Among others, the Opera in Copenhagen, Uppsala Concert & Congress Hall in Sweden and Iceland’s new national concert hall being built on the harbour in Reykjavik. Henning Larsen Architects has offices in Reykjavik, Iceland, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Henning Larsen Architects A/S, Copenhagen, Denmark

Location: Lanzarote, Spain