A team led by the firm a-fact (Andrea Rossi, Giovanni Sanna, Pierluigi Turco) has won the international competition to build a Museum of Contemporary Art, a Natural History Museum, and a Park of Arts & Culture in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro. The winning scheme was selected by the jury from a pool of 48 schemes that came from practices like Sou Fujimoto, Junya Ishigami, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Snøhetta, MCA - Mario Cucinella Architects, and Stefano Boeri Architetti.

It presents “an iconic architecture that connects culture and nature by rejoining the Morača River with the city,” combining contemporary construction techniques with the use of local materials. Crowned with green roofs, the volumes emerge on the river scenery with a stone cladding that pays homage to the encircling mountains. The landscape design starts with an analysis of the site in order to incorporate existing values and improve the park’s biodiversity. The project contributes to regenerating the river, integrating passive and active environmental strategies to reduce consumption of energy and potable water.