Shaped like a big V, like a peace sign pointing to Düsseldorf's skyline, Snøhetta's 'dancing' towers are designed so that they do not cast too much shadow on their immediate surroundings.
Duett Düsseldorf
The 'building-couple' will stand above a new opera house that will feature a beautiful wooden interior. Duett Düsseldorf is planned for Düsseldorf city centre, on a site where an opera house already stands. It is planned to demolish it and build a new opera house.
As the nearby area contains a park, the river Rhine and a busy street, the towers should not cast too much shadow. Studio Gang and NBBJ have tried to solve this using clever design.
Minimal shading
From the horizontal levels, an unmistakable V-shaped silhouette reaches up to the sky. The silhouette of the ensemble of towers changes from each new perspective, creating a constantly changing expression reminiscent of a dancing duet. The towers are strategically designed to reduce shadows from surrounding parts of the park and neighbourhood, while also creating better daylight conditions in the courtyard .
Emphasis has been placed on creating clear separations between functions and providing protection from changing weather conditions, while also ensuring a visual connection and uniform appearance of the building. This is partly due to the layered glass façade with different scales and transparency.
Green roof terrace
The towers rise from a publicly accessible roof terrace and will house living spaces, a hotel and office spaces. The terrace itself will be green and offer views of the city. It will also be used as an occasional performance space.
The new opera house is located in the low-rise building supporting the towers and will have glass facades and a striking wooden interior. In a café, visitors can enjoy their cappuccino, follow rehearsals of the choir and orchestra while the artists rehearse. A large two-storey ballet rehearsal room will have a private character but can be opened to visitors if required.
