Designed by the renowned architect Santiago Calatrava, the Liège-Guillemins railway station is a testament to contemporary architecture’s boundless creativity. Opened in 2009, the station’s design showcases Calatrava’s signature style, characterized by fluid lines, dynamic structures, and a harmonious blend of form and function.
The exterior of the station is a symphony of steel and glass, a striking contrast to the historic surroundings. Its soaring arches and undulating canopy evoke a sense of movement and fluidity, resembling the wings of a bird in flight. The clever play of light through the glass panels casts mesmerizing patterns on the ground, creating an ever-changing interplay between nature and architecture.
The well-known French artist Daniel Buren has provided Liège-Guillemins train station with a remarkable play of colours. The work ‘Comme tombées du ciel, les couleurs in situ et en mouvement’ can be seen until October 15, 2023.
He likes to think of his work as “borrowing from the landscape”, according to the Japanese expression “Shakkei”. The work partially covers the roof of the station with colored and transparent adhesive filters. A total of seven colors were selected to cover 10,000 m2 of the building. Five colors (pink, green, blue, white and orange) are applied in a checkered pattern on the glass roof and two others (yellow and red) on the two side caps. The shape is a reflection of the artist’s famous panelling, which has featured in his work since the 1960s. The red and yellow of the caps is a nod to the flag of the province of Liège.
See the pictures on Behance : Part I and Part II
