projects | Viabizzuno progettiamo la luce

the austrian architectural firm laac architekten, in collaboration with kramer architecture and christopher gruner, has remodeled the largest public square in the city centre of innsbruck, austria, for a total surface area of 9000 m² in sculpted concrete. the square retains the four existing monuments, integrated by a series of trees, benches, lighting by Viabizzuno, fountains and drinking fountains. the aim of the project was to unify the space and the structures of the square, creating a sort of urban stage devoted to a series of new activities for the city’s inhabitants. before the transformation took place, the atmosphere of the square was dominated by the façade of the tyrolean provincial government building from the period of national socialism, and by a large portal that could have been mistaken for a mausoleum of the nazi era, despite the fact that it is actually a freedom monument to commemorate the liberation of austria. the new topography of the square offers a contemporary solution for urban spaces, creating new opportunities and greater functionality. pedestrians become the protagonists of this new city stage that also takes on the role of junction between the railway station and the city centre. in the northern part of the square, the spacious area in front of the landhaus is conceived as a multi-purpose event space. a large fountain amplifies the perception of the space and provides a way to cool down in the summer. to the south of the liberation monument, the newly renovated square offers a series of spatial situations to accommodate a wide variety of activities. the texture of the concrete surface varies according to the type of geometric configuration. near the trees, the surface merges constantly into sculptured seating. at night, the square is evenly lit by special pole-mounted luminaires, designed and manufactured expressly by Viabizzuno for the project; only the monument remains in shadow. the black, yellow and white aggregate in the concrete surface helps to reflect the light. at night the square is illuminated in an omogeneous way using special poles conceived and realized expressly by Viabizzuno for the project of the square; only the monument stays in shadow. furthermore, the surface concrete, thanks to the presence of black, yellow and white granites, contributes to light reflection. it is a IP65 outdoor light fitting made of steel varnished with a colour shade expressly conceived to match with the city architecture; the support pole is 8m high out of ground and equipped with a rollaway inspectable terminal board. the pole head is circular with a 895mm diameter where 2 G12 150W 3000K metal halide kits are housed. the great Viabizzuno technologic research and engineering led to the creation of a double optics compartment made of inspectable box, very high-reflectance satinized aluminium asymmetric reflector, light traps and anti-glare transparent safety glass.