Share this on

Calatrava's World Trade Center Hub Revealed in Exhibition

The exhibit will showcase architectural models, a multimedia presentation and a selection of Calatrava's other American projects.

Nicholas Tamarin -- Interior Design, 5/21/2009 12:00:00 AM

In the dark days following September 11, 2001, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey commissioned Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava to design the transportation hub for what would be the new World Trade Center. Fresh off the overwhelming success of his first American project, the Quadracci Pavilion at the Milwaukee Museum of Art, Calatrava imagined a complex that would become a symbol of renewal and hope for New York when completed in 2014.

Now, the city's Queen Sofia Spanish Institute is unveiling his designs in a new exhibition, "Santiago Calatrava: World Trade Center Transportation Hub," running through August 31.

The exhibit was conceived as an opportunity for the estimated 250,000 commuters, subway riders and pedestrians that will traverse the hub everyday to see the adjustments Calatrava has made to his initial design in order to save time and money. It will showcase architectural models, a multimedia presentation and a selection of Calatrava's other American projects.

Forty seven of Calatrava's soaring steel arches, meant to evoke a bird being released from a child's hand, have already been installed at the World Trade Center site. Upon completion, the $3.2 billion hub will be the city's third largest, at 800,000 square feet, and feature indoor pedestrian access to the World Trade Center, PATH trains, and the New York subway system.