Daniel Libeskind is not just anyone... An American architect of international renown, he was responsible for the construction of the Jewish Museum in Berlin, the development of the new World Trade Center in New York and the development of the "City Life Masterplan" in Milan. We can also credit him, since 2015, with the Conference Centre in Mons! According to the architect, it is designed to be a new architectural landmark in the city, a link between the old and the new, a key element in the economic dynamics of the district. With the belfry listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the future train station designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, it is a remarkable architectural ensemble.
Anchored in the 21st century
The Conference Centre is located between Mons train station and Lotto Mons Expo. It is the centre of business tourism in Mons. This building, designed by Daniel Libeskind, anchored in the 21st century, links the old town to the most recent part. It is made up of a "spiral" structure, the first of its kind in Belgium.
A renowned architect
Daniel Libeskind, born on 11 May 1946 in Lodz, Poland, is a renowned American architect. His parents were Polish Jews, survivors of the Holocaust. He has built several Jewish museums such as the Jewish Museum in Berlin and the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco. But Daniel Libeskind is best known for having worked on the rehabilitation plan for the World Trade Center.
We also owe him, since 2015, for the Palais des Congrès in Mons! It has been designed to be a new architectural landmark in the city, a link between the old and the new, a key element in the economic dynamics of the district. With the belfry listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the future train station designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, this is a remarkable architectural ensemble.
Contribution from a local team
In Mons, Daniel Libeskind worked with a local architect's office: H2A, located in the Mons region since 1993. Daniel Libeskind himself chose this Mons-based team to collaborate with. He wanted to partner with an office that knew the local context. H2A therefore participated in the creation of the plans from the beginning, in September 2011. Daniel Libeskind and H2A were given carte blanche to design the Centre.
A junction between the old and the new city
In practical terms, the creator's very contemporary architecture takes on an organic form here, the spaces rolling up like a ribbon to form a prow at the highest point, with a view over the old town and its belfry. The idea was to build a place that would allow the development of business tourism, a compact, efficient... and aesthetic tool...
It will link the old town (the centre of Mons) with the new one, including the Grands Prés shopping centre and the new train station, with the idea of encompassing all the dynamism of the city of Mons.
"Small town but big idea." This is how Daniel Libeskind sums up what attracted him to this Conference Centre project.
"I like coming here, it's a place steeped in history and with a vision for the future. Mons is undergoing a rebirth. What is important to me is not the size of a project but the spirit of the place where it will take place"
Guided tour of the Centre
Once we pass through the front door, we arrive in a first space called the "Forum" (800 m2); on the left is the "Flex-Room", a new 800 m2 space that can be separated from the Forum. The "Atrium", a completely independent space of 400 m2, completes the room offering on the ground floor. In the middle, between the forum and the Flex-room, an imposing asymmetrical concrete staircase leading to an imposing Mezzanine and three auditoriums that can accommodate 500, 200 and 100 people. On the right, we head for offices and other meeting rooms or subcommittee rooms. The building has been designed so that they use very little energy.
From the corridor we use to access the auditoriums, we can see the Sainte-Waudru Collegiate Church and the Belfry. On the office side, the windows overlook the Lotto Mons Expo.
