Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1502334
12 | Architecture & Design IN 2019, THE FIRM WAS AWARDED ONE OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS; THE EUROPEAN GRAN PRIX VERSAILLES SPECIAL PRIZE FOR THE DESIGN OF THE CUGO GRAN MACINA GRAND HARBOUR IN SENGLEA IN THE CATEGORY OF EXTERIOR HOTEL DESIGN. WHAT DO YOU THINK SET THIS PROJECT APART? The structure known as Macina forms part of St. Michael's bastion, a critical part of the city of Senglea's landward defence. In fact, the shear bastion derives its name from its use, a mechanism for ship mast fitting, known as a 'macchina', which was active from the early 17th century. Through the creation of the guesthouse and ancillary facilities within the existing structure, we brought new life to the beautiful but derelict structure. In my humble opinion, what was perhaps different about this project was that the building's new use was planned so as to cause the least changes to the building whilst simultaneously mirroring the original interior and exterior appearance. All modern interventions were designed so as to be clearly visually distinguishable from the remaining original masonry, in particular from the reconstruction of the vault damaged in World War 2, to the introduction of the new pool and the creation of a bridge and lift connecting the Macina and the Annex Building. The unique history of this building had provided us with a perspective into which we projected our new designs, and this proved to be very interesting to many. In fact it was even featured this year by Germany's international public broadcasting service Deutsche Welle. YOU'VE RECEIVED SEVERAL OTHER AWARDS IN THE FIELD OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN; AND MOST RECENTLY WERE AWARDED THE 'HIGHLY COMMENDED STATUS IN THE ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARD' FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE IN THE UK. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE AWARDS AND RECOGNITION? I was of course humbled to receive these awards, however it is extremely satisfying to receive recognition for all the support and hard work of all the members of my office. I believe recognition of any local architectural firm is important for all Maltese architects, as it raises recognition for all of us and reminds us to adhere to the highest possible level of quality. " Modern architecture can fit within Maltese building styles by designing in harmony with our existing architectural landscape "