Recently Maxthreads Architectural Design and Planning from Edinburgh entered an international architecture competition for the design of a new City Cultural Centre in Taichung, Taiwan. The Taichung City Cultural Centre, Public Library & Fine Arts Museum will define the northern arrival gateway to Taichung Gateway Park, providing a public hub to the overall master plan.

As the entry sequence into urban fabric, their proposal reflects the New City’s philosophy of combining nature and innovative technology. The Taichung City Cultural Centre portrays their vision as the threshold for Taichung Gateway Park. An iconic visual corridor connects local and international arrivals (Transportation Centre) to the main cultural district of the city through a revived, vibrant pubic space.

The vision is to create an unconventional and exceptional gathering space for visitors and inhabitants, animated by public program. The concept of the “Taichung Inverted Cone” incorporates interactive, mixed-use public spaces, recreating boundaries between each program, while defining a new typology of Library and Fine Arts Museum. The architectural expression for Taichung’s City Culture Centre—”Galibrary”— has been inspired by the uniquely beautiful mountain-scape of Taroko Gorge National Park, Taiwan. Designing from their dramatic multi-level void spaces, these landforms establish a gateway to landscape beyond. Maxthreads’ proposal, therefore, introduces a strong relationship between the exterior and interior public spaces integrating into the Taichung Gateway Park.

The Taichung City Cultural Centre is designed thoroughly in conjunction with Taichung Gateway park, and includes the integration of culture, education, tourism, environmental conservation, carbon reduction, energy conservation and sustainability.