The annual art basel exhibition held in june will now be hosted at local firm herzog & de meuron's new 'messe hall' that has taken the place of the two original buildings. the main feature differentiating the new structure with the old is the city lounge concept, whereby the traditional courtyard is turned inside out and offers a social space year-round, servicing the main entrances to the north and south foyer and revitalizing exhibition square with a strong public component. thee new halls (hall 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2) are stacked upon one another, protruding out over the street with their own distinct formal character. the entire project was constructed in 22 months, split up into three phases: preliminary site work, main construction work, and dismantling of previous halls and construction of the new halls.
The ground floor provides 10,000 square meters of space (10 meter's tall) divided between hall 1.0 and the general event space - ideal for concerts, seminars or banquets with up to 2,500 posts for seating -clad in an internally-facing glass facade and external fluid shell that responds to the flow of circulation and human scale, an important factor as the majority of the traffic will be arriving from the tram stop directly in front of the city lounge area. a combination of steel members and regularly spaced columns - on a grid of 26m x 16m - allow for medium-spans and a regular sequence of free space for maximum flexibility in the organization of events. two light-filled transparent foyers receive guests and offer social areas between the third party commercial functions, including restaurants and bars, as well as a 100-person MCH lounge for smaller and more private gatherings.
The next two halls are characterized by their abstracted expanded metal skins, with parametrically designed openings that seem almost to breathe as they offer views of the city in very precise points. the top mass is slightly rotated from that of the bottom, respecting regulations that must consider zoning and daylight to neighboring structures. the previously rectangular gallery has now transformed into somewhat of a square, which opens more possibilities in the use of the space, but also responds more appropriately to the scale of the adjacent neighborhoods. the entire complex conforms to the latest ecological standards, having received the highest minergie certification and meets requirements for the SIA standards of lighting, ventilation, and air conditioning.a new project is also underway to install an array of solar panels on the green roof.