Architecture & Design

30 | Architecture & Design Another major challenge was the integration of the sophisticated climate control systems required for the Rubens tapestries. The tapestries need a stable, museum-grade environment, but the setting of the Cathedral's historic fabric was never designed to house heavy ductwork or airtight seals. We had to find voids and "silences" in the architecture to hide the modern machinery so that the contemporary expression didn't become a cluttered mess of tech. Merchants Street is one of Valletta's most active urban corridors. How did that intensity shape your approach? Merchants Street is a corridor of movement. People don't stand still; they flow past. This shaped the voice of the façade to be performative. We realised that a flat wall would be a dead note in such a vibrant street. By using rotated pilasters, we created a façade that changes as you walk. From one angle, it appears solid and protective; as you move, it opens up, the shadows shift, and the melodic relief reveals itself. The intensity of the pedestrian flow dictated that the building should never look the same way twice. In Valletta, space is the ultimate luxury. The intensity of Merchants Street meant that every centimetre of the building footprint was a site of negotiation. We had to build upwards to accommodate the Rubens tapestries, but we had to do so without suffocating the street's proportions. The approach became one of vertical rhythm; using the facade's deep-set niches to push back against the street, creating a sense of depth and breathability in an otherwise dense urban canyon. Because Merchants Street is so active, the construction process itself became a public event. The intensity of public interest, the watchful eyes of locals and tourists multiplied our sense of responsibility. We weren't just building in a vacuum; we were performing an architectural surgery in the city's living room. This pressure forced a higher level of precision in our logistical planning and a deeper commitment to the legacy we were about to leave behind. Merchants Street may be loud; a symphony of footsteps, conversation, and commerce. The new Tapestry Chamber had to act as a mediator between this urban noise and the sacred silence required for the admiration of the Tapestries. The thickness of the stone and the strategic geometry of the relief were calibrated to provide an atmospheric buffer. The approach was to create a reliquary that felt heavy and silent inside, even while sitting at the heart of the city's most intense corridor. Can you talk us through the choice of materials for the façade, and how they respond to Malta's climate? Our choice of globigerina limestone is a commitment to Contextual Materialism, using the island's own geological DNA to protect its most precious artistic treasures. The façade uses its own shadows as a thermal shield, proving that in the face of the fierce Maltese sun, geometry can be just as effective as technology. We haven't just built a wall; we have crafted a high-performance skin that breathes with the city. By using the same stone as the original 16th-century Cathedral, we ensure material continuity. The new façade doesn't look like an attachment. It feels like it has grown out of the same bedrock. It is also not a cladding. The large- scale limestone blocks are a living material. Over time, the new façade will weather, darkening slightly and absorbing the character of Valletta's salt-laden air, eventually bridging the visual gap between the 2026 intervention and the 1570s original. The sheer thickness and density of the limestone blocks provide immense thermal mass. This acts as a heat sink, absorbing the sun's energy during the day and preventing it from penetrating the interior. Inside this monumental reliquary, we need a stable micro-climate for the Rubens tapestries. The stone skin works in tandem with modern systems to reduce the cooling load, using its natural properties to maintain the sacred silence and temperature required for conservation. What did the design evolution look like, from early sketches to the unveiled façade? The unveiled façade is the final document of an entire journey. It closely retains the DNA of our first sketches and our respect

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