Positioned at the end of Grand Rue and Rue Aldringen, Galeries Lafayette is the first building to open as part of a major mixed-use development by Foster+Partners and Tetra Kayser. This striking building is located in the heart of Luxembourg City, designed as a dynamic mix of places to work, live, and play. Completed in 2019 with 12,631 m2 in size, this building design can provide an attractive and dynamic retail experience for all visitors.
Design
The full development creates an awesome design that will transform the project area on the edge of the historic center into a vibrant urban quarter with some social and civic spaces. Several studies are done by the design team to design the building that can establish a timeless yet contemporary addition to the existing buildings. This design also offers an attractive and dynamic retail experience so visitors can go shopping in an attractive daylit environment.
The floorplates of the building are designed to accommodate a single department on each floor with some escalators rising through the center. This center is topped by a roof light that lets daylight comes into the heart of the store and provides a strong sense of orientation. The panoramic lifts animate the stunning view from Boulevard Royale and providing a good connection to the outside for all passengers.
Structure
The building ables to complement the existing fabric of the historic city and creates an attractive destination at the same time. It is also topped by a sky garden with awesome views of the surrounding city, enveloping a rooftop bar and restaurant, protecting it from the cold winter wind, and makes the roof garden habitable all year round.
The shadows, reflection, and color on the glass animate the innovative facade like a jewel as the sun tracks around the building. This facade is also interspersed with clear panels, allowing natural daylight enters the retail spaces and occupants glimpses of the outside.
Details
It is a project that boasts impressive sustainable credentials to achieve a BREEAM – Excellent rating. It also includes a ‘thermal labyrinth’, an innovative passive ventilation system that can pull air from outside through a maze-like concrete chamber using the high thermal mass of concrete to condition the air. This air then supplied throughout the buildings.
Galeries Lafayette Gallery
Photographer: Nigel Young