West Cork Arts Centre

The project aims to create a new urban facility by transforming a closed and difficult access city block into a cultural square, capable of combining a sense of privacy and a strong social identity, more than just designing a recognizable architectural object.

The West Cork Arts Centre therefore meant to be a natural and extemporal constituent of the site. Rises within the urban fabric of Skibbereen to form a new focus on the territory, with the power to lend the town a new expression, not a monument but a tridimensional public space, an open forum for arts and Culture.

Instead of a mere narrow access (another Laneway) the new bridge became part of the overall strategy for the Centre, acting as an attractor, creating a clear urban continuity from Main Street up to Townshend Street. Approaching the Centre one arrives at an open space that function as entrance hall. The New WCAC communicates as a square, as an open meeting point, a stage for multiple events to take place.