The project is our competition entry for West Cork Music Concert Hall. The site is located in the small coastal town of Bantry in West Cork. Inspired by Bantry’s maritime history, coastal geology and ancient Irish poetry, the proposal focuses on achieving a world class Concert Hall, whilst ensuring that the room and the surrounding building are rooted in the traditions of WCM and the locality of place.
The building is split into two distinct elements, expressed externally as two separate forms: a rectangular cuboid containing the Concert Hall, and an enveloping single-storey plinth containing the Foyer, Education Facility, and BOH/Admin.
Reflecting traditional boat structures and sea creatures, the interior of the Concert Hall is conceived as a warm-hearted vessel contained within a metaphorical fishing net, manifesting itself as a woven masonry skin. The enveloping structure is reminiscent of cave and coastal rock formations.