Centre for Art

The architect was commissioned by the financier Robert Altmann to design offices together with a gallery. He wanted to combine his private collection of paintings with his offices. For this reason, Ricardo Porro, who had previously worked mainly in Cuba, designed the building in three parts. Offices were to be located on the ground floor, and these were available for letting to tenants. Large exhibition spaces were planned for the upper storeys, which at the same time served as the entrance hall to Robert Altmann's private offices. The concept behind the structure was that the building should reflect the image of the compact country of Liechtenstein. The project was designed to underscore the fact that Liechtenstein was one of the most important centres of the business world.

The building, which is sturdy and has a strong physical presence while at the same time being energised and dynamic, consists of a complex glass-metal façade with gold-toned windows. The building's most striking feature is probably the hanging lamellae made of anodised aluminium with a golden shimmer. When a number of the lamellae, which continually moved and emitted sounds, were blown off the façade during a December storm, these were fitted with a ball joint system to prevent them moving. This put an end to the originally intended sound effect.

The Centre for Art can't be visited from the inside!