| Architect |
Foster +
Partners |
| Date Built |
1990s |
The Bilbao Metro website says
that, "... Norman Foster and his
team were commissioned to design and
plan the underground stations on the
Bilbao Metro.
Integrating architecture and
engineering is the underlying theme
that makes the Bilbao underground so
appealing and attractive. In
1998, Metro Bilbao was awarded the
Brunel Prize for Railway
Architecture for the network as a
whole and Sarriko Station in
particular." (see below)  "Sarriko does not follow the typical cavern-shaped layout, but it is instead made up of a big single space, with a big crystal shelter allowing for natural sun light. It was designed by Norman Foster, with a main hall located suspended directly above the rail tracks."       The Metro website
adds that there are three aspects that
are clearly discernable in Foster's
work, originality, causing the
greatest level of attraction using
materials with moderation, and the
integration of architecture and
engineering. The Foster +
Partners website also points out that,
"... The glassy entrance
canopies − or 'Fosteritos' − that
announce the inner-city Line 1
stations at street level are as
special to Bilbao as the Art
Nouveau Métro entrances are to
Paris. Their shape is evocative of
inclined movement and generated by
the profile of the escalator
tunnels as they rise up to
pavement level. The canopies admit
natural light by day, and are
illuminated at night, forming
welcoming beacons in the
streetscape."
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Bilbao
Metro, Spain
 |
