Reykjavik City Hall

In Reykjavik the winners of the architectural competition for the new town hall were two young architects, who were almost fresh out of college. The curving sweep of the pond is carried through to define the shape of internal building elements, just as Reykjavik has been shaped itself by the sea, and the buffer zone that encloses the route through the building, in contrast, projects its orthogonal form into the circular pond. On being awarded the commission, the architects had moved to Reykjavik and established their new practice there as ‘Studio Granda’ and Oddsson and the Council’s staff continued to work with them to develop their design. Studio Granda have continued their practice in Reykjavik, completing their equally fine Supreme Court of Iceland in 1996 and the Reykjavik Art Museum in 2000.