American white oak panels have been used to clad the inside space of Oslo’s new Opera House, creating a clever juxtaposition with the building’s ice-like exterior.
Rising from the ground in glass, solar, aluminium and white marble, Oslo-based architects practice Snøhetta has drawn on inspiration from Norwegian scenes.
It chose to clad the undulating walls of the main foyer and auditoria in 3000 square metres of American white oak panels.
The Opera House, is the largest cultural building to be completed in Norway since Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim (c.1300). Its base area is the equivalent of four international standard football fields and the building has 1,100 rooms grouped in numerous sections.
It has been hailed as an important symbol of what Norway represents as a nation and will express the role that opera and ballet have in society.
The generously-spaced public areas are located in the building’s western section, which include the main foyer, a large performance auditorium with 1,350 seats and a small auditorium with 400 seats.
The foyer is a grand open room that is enhanced through clever lighting. The outside white marble path carries on through the foyer reflecting light onto the timber panels.
